St Himemiya Kurusugawa girls academy
by langniappe
Summary: Chikane and Himeko are reincarnated into their next life and unaware of their past, attending a boarding school named after the solar and lunar priestesses. Rape and yuri.
1. Once upon a time

Kannazuki no Miko fanfic~

Himeko and Chikane have been reincarnated into different lives. There is

no need for the Solar and Lunar priestesses, but their fates are still

entwined. Yuri!

Himeko brushed a strand of long blonde hair out of her face as she stared out of the window at the morning snow perched on the branches of dead trees. It was the first light of the first day of July, the day that Himeko moved to her new boarding school. As she waited for her taxi to arrive, she pondered of the people in St Himemiya-Kurusugawa girls academy. It was famous for its etiquette and education. She knew she was lucky to have parents that would pay for such a school but was afraid of not fitting in with the higher class girls.

Suddenly the taxi she was waiting for drove up her drive way, spitting cold water around its tyres as they turned through the misty path. Himeko stood at her window for a few seconds until the horn blared. She grabbed her coat off of a chair and sprinted down the stairs to get her luggage.

_I hope I meet wonderful people._

***

As the taxi pulled in front of St Himemiya-Kurusugawa, Himeko payed her fare. Standing outside the gates with her luggage, the buildings astounded her. A white stone path lead up to the front black gates, behind them was many tall, rich girls in elegant winter uniforms, their faces clouded by soft mist. By now, it had stopped snowing and all that was left was the mist to enchant the eyes of strangers. There was one girl in particular standing at the gate with raven-blue hair, tied into it was a yellow ribbon. The tall beauty looked as if she were waiting for someone.

Himeko started walking up to the gates to find the reception so she could get her key to her room. As she stepped onto the grounds, she was stopped by soft hands. "Himeko Mikiyuchi?" A crisp voice called her name. She looked up to see the raven haired girl gazing at her. Himeko blushed and slightly nodded her head.

The girl smiled and showed pearl-white teeth "My name is Chikane Ikuzawa, I'm head of school council here and I want to wish you a warm welcome and for you to enjoy your time here at St Himemiya-Kurusugawa girls academy."

"Th-Thankyou Ikuzawa-sama!" Chikane's smile was warm and friendly. Himeko noticed a slight tinge of red spread across her cheeks. "Would you like me to show you to reception?" Himeko blushed a harder shade of red _She's so beautiful... Why would she want to hang around with me?_ Himeko shook her head "I-It's okay, I think I can find it on my own." She didn't want to cause Chikane any trouble, after all she is head of school council. She must have better things to do. Chikane looked somewhat disappointed but then grinned softly "Well, point out where it is, Himeko." Himeko felt light in the head and looked away "I don't know..." _She called me by my first name..._ Chikane smiled and took Himeko's hand in her own.

"Your hands are freezing," Chikane lifted Himeko's hand hand and shaped her fingers so that they were pointing at a building smaller than the rest "You know now." Himeko blushed and put her tingling hand to her chest. "Thankyou Ikuzawa." Himeko's heart was beating like a drum by now. Chikane had a spell over Himeko "Please, call me by my first name, Himeko." _Himeko..._ The name seemed to linger on Chikane's lips. It didn't even sound like Himeko's name. When Chikane said it like that, it sounded like a princess from a faraway country. "Okay... Ikuz- I mean, Chikane!" for the first time, Chikane laughed. The sound chimed in Himeko's ears. It made her feel dizzy "You should probably go find reception now, it will close soon." Chikane smiled and touched Himeko's shoulder. "Um, Sorry I forgot!" Himeko turned around and quickly started walking towards reception while Chikane stood in the same place, gazing as Himeko walked away.

_I know you from somewhere..._

_A/N_: In Australia July is in Winter so don't get confused with months nya ^^ And I didn't name the school what it is for a lame reason because it sounds lame when I read it to myself so I'll have to get the next chapter up quickly!


	2. Room mate

_A/N:_ No they are not from Australia. I'm from Australia and I have no idea what month the middle of Winter is in Japan so I just said July that's Winter here, heh. ^^

Himeko entered the surprisingly warm reception area. There was a woman loudly tapping at a new-looking computer and chewing gum. Himeko nervously walked up to the desk and took off her coat. "Yes?" The woman said without looking up from her computer. Her nametag read 'Izumi Asai' "I just transferred here from Ototachibana, my name is Himeko Michiyuki." Himeko couldn't look at the receptionist in the eye.

She suddenly stopped typing for a few seconds then started again. After a moment, she spoke. "From Mahoroba. Room 487 dorm C." She stood up and went over to a filing cabinet, in that light Himeko noticed that her hair was an aqua blue colour. As she was rummaging through it, she tapped her foot impatiently, stilleto's clicking against the tiled floor behind her desk.

Once she had found the key she was looking for she came back and handed Himeko the key. Without saying another word, she sat down at her computer and started tapping at the keys again. "Thankyou, miss." Himeko said shyly. "Off you go." the woman sounded as if she were anticipating Himeko's leave. "Um... If you don't mind, may I ask you a question?" Izumi frowned "Yes?" "I was wondering... Where would I find dorm C?" Himeko asked sheepishly "When you leave this building, there is a board indicating where all of the buildings are and it has a map on there. I trust you won't get lost?" The woman still had not looked up from her computer since she had sat down. "Thanks." With that, Himeko turned around and exited the room.

Outside, it had gotten colder. Himeko could see the windows of reception freezing over with cold ice and fog. It was hard to see back inside. She almost walked into the notice board, as she was looking all around for it. She stared at the complicated map of the huge school _I don't think I'll find my dorm so easily..._ "This map is so difficult! I got lost for half a day when I first transferred here!" Himeko heard a cheerful voice from behind her.

"I haven't seen you before so I'm guessing you're new?" Himeko turned around to see a short-haired brunette "Yeah... I'm looking for dorm C." The girl smiled lightly "That's just over there!" she pointed towards a building in the distance, shrouded by light fog "Thankyou!"

"That's okay!" The girl held out her hand "My name is Makoto, what's yours?" Himeko smiled at Makoto "My name is Himeko Michiyuki." She said as she shook Makoto's hand

***

Once Himeko had arrived at her door, her hands felt like icicles. She felt around in her bag for the key. Once she had found it, she turned it in the lock. "Wow..." her dorm room looked much more elegant than that of the school grounds itself. For one, it was very big and the wallpaper was a crimson trimmed with gold coloured panels running along the bottom. There were two beds, perfectly made. Himeko went to sit down in one bed. It felt so soft that she could sleep there. But suddenly she noticed the desk next to it. Books in alphabetical order, photos, and clippings from magazines. "What!? I have a room mate!?" Himeko realised that this was the wrong bed and quickly jumped up, flattened out the creases where she sat, grabbed her suitcase and ran to the other bed. "If I have a room mate then where is she?" Himeko was puzzled as to where this girl could be, she was even speaking out loud to herself.

_It doesn't matter I should just get unpacked and see her later. _Himeko just threw her belongings randomly on her desk and went to go rest on her bed. Before she sat down, she took one glance at her room mates desk and shuddered. "I will look messy and unorganized if my room mate sees my desk..." Himeko quickly got up and quickly organized her stationary and books. Once she was done she looked at her finished work and was proud of herself. It must have been the most productive thing she had ever done this year!

_That's really quite sad._

Himeko sat down on her soft bed and sighed. She was really tired from all of the icy weather outside. The window next to her bed was fogging up like the ones at reception. Outside was coloured grey with a tinge of blue. The clouds covered the sky like a thick woolen blanket. It felt kind of depressing. _I wonder what my room mate is like._..

She threw her legs up onto the bed and lay down, still wearing her coat and slowly closed her eyes, sluggishly drifting in and out of a light doze. Just as she fell into a deep sleep she felt a presence enter the room but she was too tired to awaken.

***

_I see a girl in the distance... No, she looks like a woman... I don't know I can't see her face. Why is it so blurred? We're sitting in a garden of roses, she's holding a cup of tea... I don't know where this is but I feel such a heavy feeling in my chest as if it's fuelling the agony I'm feeling... I don't even know why._

_I think the girl's looking towards me with her head tilted to the side. I try to speak but I'm choking on my words I think I hear a voice but it's so distorted it gives me a headache trying to understand what she's saying._

_Suddenly, she places her tea next to her and starts to walk over to me. I feel a cool hand on my face... It's so soft... Her face draws closer to mine and I feel a warn tingling sensation on my lips... I taste sweetness, combined with the coolness on my cheek and the warmness on my lips. I feel so light in the head... I still can't see her face but everything feels so real._

_I don't know why it hurts. It's excruciating but I don't ever want this to end._

***

Himeko's eyes slowly fluttered open for her eyes to meet with eyes of pale blue colouring and a warm smile.

"AH! WHO THE HELL ARE YOU!?" The face lightly laughed at her. Once her vision wasn't so blurred she recognised the face studying hers immediately. "Sorry, Ikuza- Chikane." Himeko said, a little frightened. Chikane eased back a lot and smiled "Well, well. Nobody told me that I was going to have a new room mate." Himeko gasped a little _So Chikane is my room mate!_ Himeko could feel a slight surge of joy run through her.

Chikane sat down on the bed next to Himeko, who could feel her heart racing for some reason "Would you like some tea?" Chikane offered as she stood up to head towards the door. Himeko nodded slowly and watched Chikane pace towards the door. As she opened it, she spoke. "I'm sorry I may not be around much except on the weekends and at night. I have lots of things to do."

Himeko smiled and nodded "That's okay Chikane, I'm sure you're very busy." Chikane smiled at Himeko and closed the door behind her as she was still in the room, walked over to Himeko and put her face close to hers as she kneeled down in front of her.

Himeko's heart was pounding against her ribs, she could feel Chikanes breath on her face. "Um... Chikane what are you doing?"

"My heart hurts when I see your face and I don't know why. When you sleep you just look so cute." Himeko swallowed and her face was swept over by a rush of crimson, nearly as deep as the walls. Chikane's eye's looked like the endless ocean blue before she closed them and leaned into Himeko to steal her lips. _For some reason, I don't want to resist..._

It tasted the same way that it had in her dream, it felt the same but she'd never met this girl before. Chikane's hand was running through Himeko's hair, the other around her waist from her position kneeling on the floor, reaching up to Himeko's lips up on the bed.

When she pulled away from what seemed like an eternity, she finally spoke "What about that tea?"

A/N: The next chapter should be up pretty soon because I've already got alot of it definitely planned. Like when I get over writers block, I go insane with flooding ideas O_O; *deadface* Anyways reeeeeview desu~ ^^


	3. Chapter 3

After Chikane had left Himeko alone in their room, Himeko sat on her bed, her lips tingling and her legs shaking. _Why didn't I resist? Chikane is another girl... What was I thinking? _She hugged onto her goose down pillow tightly and felt a lump in her throat. _I've only met her today, what's going on?_ She tried to swallow the lump but it made tears well up in her eyes.

_Am I going insane? Is it possible to have your heart in agony so much just because of one person you just met!? Let alone another girl..._ Himeko could not stop thinking about the forbidden moment they shared. She shivered and adjusted her coat, then wiped the tears falling so fast with her sleeve. _My pulse won't stop pounding and I have a strange ringing in my ears..._ _This isn't possible._

She lay down for a few minutes to allow herself to calm down a little. After not very long, she stopped crying and the tears were completely wiped away _I'm just waking up now. That was a dream, too. My room mate hasn't even arrived yet and nothing happened._ Himeko tried to come to her senses. Suddenly she heard the door click and open.

Himeko looked up to see a very red-faced Chikane walk into the room with two cups of tea and for an instant, her heart stopped. "I'm sorry, Michiyuki. That was innapropriate and inexcusable of me to violate and bring you discomfort. I am happy to oblige to any consequence you see fit and I hope this has not ruined any future friendship that may occur." Chikane bowed her head and slowly advanced to Himeko's bedside table without making eye contact and placing down Himeko's tea.

_Why is she saying it like that?_ Himeko didn't say anything as Chikane went to sit on the red couch in the corner of the room. She stared out the window and watched the dusk sunlight chewing through clearing mist. Her lips touched the delicate tea cup as Chikane slowly sipped her cinnamon tea.

Chikane looked up and caught Himeko's gaze. Himeko's head was spinning with questions but there was one she just had to ask. "...Why did you do that?" Chikane lifted her shiny lips from her tea cup. "If I may answer honestly, will you please not be offended?"

"Okay." Himeko quietly said. "... It was uncontrollable. It's like when I saw you sleeping, I tried to resist but it was painful for some reason." Himeko was surprised that this answer came out so easily but was a little scared that someone she met felt that way about her.

"I'm sorry. Please forget it." _Why is she saying that when she apologized like she did before? Is she avoiding my question?_ Himeko sighed and quickly drank her tea. An aroma of Cinnamon filled her head with a calming smell when she drew the tea close to her face and inhaled the sweet scent.

They both sat in silence, not even stealing glances. Until Chikane spoke, words like a swift sword smashing ice. "Did anyone tell you..." Himeko looked towards Chikane and listened intently. "Why this academy is so funded?"

_Perhaps she just wants to break the silence._ Himeko shook her head a little as Chikane traced the patterns in the wall paint with her slender finger "I'll show you tomorrow."

Chikane smiled for the first time she came into the room. "...Okay." Himeko said almost silently. She noticed that the outside was getting dark and she should get a good sleep because her classes start tomorrow. And simultaneously, as if she had read Himeko's mind, Chikane spoke. "Classes start tomorrow," she was staring out the window "You should get some rest after a day of travel. Would you like me to give you a tour around the school tomorrow?"

Himeko smiled "That would be nice, Chikane. Thank you very much!"

***

Himeko's eyes slowly fluttered open and saw the bright sunlight peering into the large window Top of Form 1Bottom of Form 1

through the curtains. She turned over in her soft tangled sheets to see Chikane's empty bed. _Oh... She wasn't kidding about not being around much._

She rubbed her eyes, sat upright and stared at the illuminated curtains then decided to go and open them. As she pulled back the thick fabric she felt blinded by the drastic change in weather. _It looks like it will be a beautiful day today. I hope that it will stay like this._

Himeko paced over to her wardrobe and pulled her new school uniform off of a coat hanger and layed it out on her bed. As she smoothed out the fabric with her hands, she tilted her head to the side and smiled, letting her golden hair fall off of her should and hang, glistening in the sunlight coming in from her open window. As she unbuttoned her satin pyjama's, she let the sun warm her chest. She didn't know why, it just felt good as if the warmth just went to her heart.

She changed herself into her uniform and turned in the mirror and touched her face as she admired the clothing. Black embroidery decorated the collar and puffed short sleeves of the white blouse that was tucked into a very high-waisted deep purple skirt.

"You look stunning." Himeko turned around to see Chikane leaning against the doorway "Ah! Chikane please make some noise when you come in." Himeko said to Chikane. She just smiled and walked over to Himeko's bed to sit on it.

"Sorry, I was in the music room. I tend to be up very early and play there for a while." Himeko noticed the sun shining in the corner of her eyes. "That's okay, I don't mind at all. Oh, by the way, what time is it now? I've noticed there is no clock in here." Chikane glanced at the watch on her wrist. It was silver with tiny roses carved into the frame. "It's only six thirty, do you want to go have breakfast in the cafe?" Himeko nodded at the suggestion "Are you sure that it's open? It's really early."

Chikane just smiled and spoke "Don't worry, it closes at curfew and opens at five. It's really convenient if you wake up and just can't get back to sleep." Himeko smiled and stood up "Let's go then, I just need to get my ba-"

"Don't worry, I'll pay." Chikane lightly touched Himeko's shoulder then made for the door "Hey! Wait! I'll pay! I'll pay!" Himeko started to run after Chikane "Too late!" Chikane said playfully with a grin.

***

At the cafe, the two girls sat at a booth and waited for someone to come ask for their order. Slow classical music quietly played through the chatter of other people _This is such a pretty atmosphere_. "I like coming here alot, it's really relaxing and the food is great." Chikane said as a uniformed waitress walked over.

"What would you li- Hey! You're the girl from yesterday!" Himeko looked up to see Makoto "Hi, Makoto! I didn't know you worked here." Himeko smiled "Well you do now! So what would you and Chikane like?" _They know eachother? Oh it's no surprise, Chikane is head of student council after all._ "I would like a cinnamon tea and french toast please, Makoto." Chikane said kindly and then looked towards Himeko

"Oh, I would like some pancakes and Vanilla tea with three sugars, please." Makoto smiled "Of course!" She wrote down their orders on her notepad and disappeared into the kitchen.

"Ah, you two know eachother?" Chikane said to Himeko "Yes, she showed me how to get to the dormitory yesterday." Himeko smiled "It's great that you're already making friends!" Chikane clasped her hands together and beamed.

After a few minutes, Makoto walked back with their orders on a tray "Makoto, when do you get off of your shift?" Makoto blushed and spoke "In about ten minutes actually, how come?" Chikane smiled "Why don't you sit with us for a while?" Makoto blushed even deeper _Wow, Chikane is so kind!_ "Okay! Anyway I'd better get back to work, I'll come find you later." She smiled and waved as she went to another table to take an order.

Himeko sipped her tea and and smiled "It's wonderful." Chikane nodded and tasted her tea and she looked like she was about to melt. "The taste and aroma never bore me, it gets me everytime. That's why I always come here."

"Your weakness, is it?" Himeko said playfully "Not quite." Chikane smiled and leaned towards Himeko and narrowed her eyes "It's up to you to find that." Himeko blushed and lightly laughed.

For a while, the two girls chatted about life and classes "What classes do you have today?" Chikane asked with her head rested on her hand. "Um... I think that I have photography first." Chikane listened with interest "Oh. Do you like that?" Himeko nodded "Yes, even though I'm not very good at it I still try."

"Really? Do you have a portfolio with you?" Chikane said. Himeko blushed "Um. Yes." She said bashfully "May I see it?" Himeko reached into her bag and pulled out a folder. Chikane took it and looked through it. She seemed to be intrigued by a certain picture of a tree with a rope tied around it.

"These are really good! I like this one." Chikane pointed to the photo that she was looking at "Oh... It's not really that good but I wanted a photo of that tree. I liked to lie in the grass there, it felt nice to be there." Himeko said with some relaxation on this topic "Hmm... I know that place, I just can't put my finger on it though." Chikane looked puzzled "Well it's a spirtual place, really. It was to protect the village. I heard that the Solar and Lunar priestesses made it a protection." Chikane nodded and smiled "That's why. In history last year I did a history project on the legend of the Solar and Lunar priestesses. I found it quite interesting."

"Oh really? So you know the legend?" Himeko was puzzled as Chikane laughed when she said this. "Did you know, this school was built in commemeration of the Priestesses. Himemiya and Kurusugawa were the Solar and Lunar priestesses last names! I don't think anyone remembers their first names though, it was an odd fifty years ago." _Ah. Why didn't I realise that?_ Suddenly they saw Makoto walk towards their booth in her uniform.

"Hi! Do you want to go to the school grounds park right now?"

A/N: Reviewww meeeeee~ Oh by the way I needed to ask something

I am planning on writing a really long story about Rinoa being trapped in time compression and Sora and his friends crash into that world and take her with them. Her memories are pretty much mostly gone of Squall's face and the two eventually meet in traverse town but don't recognise eachother especially with Squall's drastic change in appearance and name and because Squall already forgot Rinoa's face. 'Leon' is currently together with Aerith and when Rinoa eventually recognises him she gets all sad and wants to go back in time to where she was with her friends and Squall. She eventually becomes Ultimecia over time and compresses time and her motive becomes unclear to even herself and tries to kill the ff8 cast from the past without realizing and when she achieved time compression her past self becomes stuck in time compression.

I'm not sure whether I should continue writing it because I just realised that it will be REALLY long and I'm afraid of just stopping in the middle but it's a pretty decent storyline for me so idk. I need opinions.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I'm SO sorry I've been busy while I'm on break and not home that much and when I am I've busied myself with ffiv! Also, I have a new computer now so I've lost this chapter and now I have to rewrite it, not turning out the way I've intended (I think this chapter is doomed not to be posted) *sniff* Enjoy!

The threesome sat in the park for quite a while now, enjoying the morning sunshine while it lasts. Makoto and Himeko lightly swung themselves on the creaking swings while Chikane sat on the ground and picked at the freshly mowed grass, waiting for the chiming sound of the first bell. They talked for a while about themselves, each one enjoying the company of each other. "So Himeko, that's it like in Ototachibana? I used to live there but I was a toddler so I don't remember." Makoto asked Himeko curiously. She thought for a while "Well it's certainly smaller than this town but this place seems so peaceful." Makoto laughed as Chikane commented "That's because it's strict here! The school puts idiots in their place." Chikane said jokingly and Himeko giggled a little "It's true though, you should try to keep in line." Makoto said as she shielded her eyes from the sun that emerged from behind a cloud. Chikane started slowly pulling the petals off of a rose and groaned, her hair falling forward "I have humanities to perfectly start the year. Geography is my weakness." Makoto chuckled at this thought "Hey I have the same thing! I wonder if we're in the same class?" Chikane looked up at Makoto, her fringe brushed across her eyes framing the blueness. She arched a perfect eyebrow, pouted and smiled "Ah, let's sit together then." Makoto blushed and looked away. Chikane had gotten the perfect reaction.

The bell rang and within seconds, flocks of students filled the grounds. The three friends stood up and Chikane waved at Himeko and parted ways. First was homeroom then photography. Himeko walked towards the buildings and entered the corridor, pushing herself through the crowd of girls, occasionally being shoved into a wall. Her small thin frame was not enough to keep herself looking for classroom 10-E. Eventually the corridor emptied out and there were few students wandering around looking for their homeroom. Himeko eventually found her classroom and entered to find that she was the last to arrive as there was only one seat left next to a quite voluptuous girl. All eyes were on her, constantly averting as she shyly glanced back into the eyes of other people. Himeko timidly sat in her seat, the brunette not looking at her once. She sort of looked as if she were in a trance. She quietly said hello then diverted her attention to the frowning teacher. "Glad that you could join us, miss…" Himeko bowed her head and apologized, in a few seconds an eruption of laughter started and she blushed a deep crimson. She looked up to see the teacher patiently waiting. When the guffaw died down she realized that the teacher wanted her name. "Um, Michiyuki, miss." The teacher frowned "I think I'll need to remember that." Himeko buried her face into the desk feeling the agony of all eyes on her.

The teacher started calling attendance and she heard a volatile voice whisper in her ear "Are you okay?" Himeko looked up to see a face near hers. She flinched and nodded. "She's a horrible teacher; she picked on me for being scatterbrained when she was my science teacher last year." The girl tilted her head to the side and squinted her eyes. "Are you a first year? I haven't seen you around before…" Himeko couldn't help but stifle a giggle. She heard someone else behind her "Of course she isn't a first year you idiot, Misato! Otherwise she wouldn't be in this class." Himeko turned around to see a sneering blonde.

Misato blushed and started to play with her hair and Himeko looked away_. I __feel sort of sorry for her…_

***

After another encounter with the corridor, Himeko found that the photography room was not that far away. As she entered, she was relieved that she was early because she didn't want to deal with any mean teachers.

She sat down at an empty table next to a window. It was awfully dark in the classroom. Students slowly piled into the room and lastly, a man hurriedly paced inside and placed a heavy looking box on the front desk. "My name is Mr Sakito, this year I am your photography teacher!" Himeko's teacher seemed cheerful enough. He looked like he was in his twenties and she could smell a scent of strong cigarettes from where she was sitting up the front.

He wrote his name quite neatly but fast on the whiteboard. He didn't seem very strict at all. Himeko glanced to her side to see a girl listening to her mp3 quite obviously. Mr Sakito spun around on his heel to face his class "As a first lesson today, we'll review what you already know." He sat at his desk and tapped loudly at his desk with a pen. "Let's see... I'll start with you."

***

Photography wasn't as fun as Himeko thought it would be. She wanted to go out into the sunshine and take some photos, not talk about whatever she already knows. She decided that she would stay in the classroom a few minutes after everyone including the teacher had left because her legs were too tired from sitting in class to deal with the crowded corridor.

A/N: I only just got back from Adelaide for a week so it again, has been delayed. Gomen!

Once she decided it the corridor had died down enough she walked out of the classroom to her dorm to relax until next session because she had a free session after break.

***

Himeko was greeted after she walked through the door "Hi Himeko!" Chikane smiled "How was class?" Himeko threw herself onto her bed and sighed "It was so boring..." Chikane laughed a little "It's always like that the first day!"

Chikane left whatever she was doing at her desk and walked over to Himeko's bed to sit on the foot of it. "What are you doing here anyway?" Himeko asked Chikane with curiosity. "I may ask the same thing to you but I have a free session next."

Himeko secretly felt happy, she considered that she wanted Chikane's company a little. She buried her face into the pillow and attempted to nod but ended getting a mouthful of pillow. Chikane laughed and ran her hand through Himeko's hair which made her heart jump a little. "You're so cute." She said under her breath so Himeko couldn't hear her.

Himeko's tiredness overwhelmed her even though she hadn't really done anything. It was probably because she wasn't used to being up so early. "I'm gonna go to sleep, 'kay Chikane?" Chikane nodded and went back over to her desk.

"Sweet dreams."

***

_An agonizing feeling of nostalgia burned in my chest. I saw a hazy image of a girls face through the warm steam that embraced my naked body. The feeling burned deep inside of me that I was in a bathroom, I looked around but I can't see the girl anymore. Instead I feel a soft body against my back and long arms around me. I can hear a gentle, yet sad voice whisper into my ear but I can't hear any clear words. I felt my weakness prodded as my ear was nipped and I could faintly be aware of my cheeks ablaze. Long dark strands of hair fell over my shoulder from behind and a warm cheek was pressed against mine._

_She let go of me and I could feel her presence fading, a dream receding. I felt like I had opened my eyes for the first time. I found myself in a vast field of flowers, a hand in mine. I held onto it like I was holding on for dear life. A strange sadness tangled itself in my throat. I was screaming someone's name but I couldn't hear my words. I gazed into the face of a stranger, still calling. Was she being pulled into the sky?_

_I love you, I have all of my life. But I can't find it in my memories to have a clue to who you must be. I know that these feelings will never reach you from here as your hand slips from min. Yet still I continue to call your name, a name without a face. A name without sound. My heart ignites as she slips from view._

***

Himeko opened her eyes to a sudden realisation that she was alone and she could feel tears in her eyes and her throat swelling. It was the girl from her dream last night. Still lying down, she hugged her blankets tightly and curled herself into the foetal position letting tears slip from her eyes and wet her pillow. It hurt not knowing this girl for some reason.

She glanced at her alarm clock and found that she only had ten minutes until her next session started. _How long was I asleep for?_ Himeko swung her legs so that she was sitting upright. _I wonder where Chikane went?_ Almost instantly forgetting about her dream she went to her desk and collected her English books and stationary then waited for the bell to sound.

A/N: I've fixed the stuffed up lines. I hope SO much that I have changed it before anyone had read it!!!!!!!! Reviews!


	5. Chapter 5

_Ha, so much for Chikane's company._ Himeko sadly joked to herself. She could've kicked herself for going to sleep now that she fully had her senses.

After the bell chimed, the corridors weren't as crowded as they had been. Her journey to her English classroom was at least safe. Himeko could feel a cold aura in her class. The sort that she could feel uncomfortable in the presence of.

"Himeko Mikiyuchi?" Himeko turned to face her teacher, a smiling, tall woman. "You're the last to arrive, are you feeling okay? Your colouring is off." Himeko smiled at her teacher and nodded "I'm fine, miss." Himeko found a seat at the back of the room where lazy afternoon sunlight could reach her.

"My name is Mrs Junko," The teacher announced to her class. "I welcome you to this year, I see some new faces and I hope you can make them feel welcome." Mrs Junko glanced directly towards Himeko, then back to the whole class. "I have set work for you all, please complete 1A of your English textbooks, then we will be studying American culture in the second half of this session.

***

The second half of the lesson, Mrs Junko gave a speech about the musical culture of America and gave homework out. The final bell rang and the students very quickly bolted out of the room. Himeko was late getting her things together and Mrs Junko tried to start conversation.

"Are you enjoying St Himemiya-Kurusugawa?" She said while filing her sheets and standing up. Himeko nodded and turned to face the door. "Wait." Himeko stopped, feeling slightly uncomfortable. She heard heels clicking against the floor which suddenly stopped, the sound was replaced by warm breath on the nape of her neck that smelt like mint and gave her Goosebumps.

"You forgot something." A cold bony hand made its way up on the inside of her leg. Himeko was frozen in fear. "Um..." She could feel tears in eyes and her legs were shaking at the tingling sensation where the monster had her hands. She could feel Mrs Junko's cold cheek against her hot cheek from behind and she placed a cold pen in her mouth.

Mrs Junko walked away into the corridor soon to be out of sight.

***

Himeko entered the lonely dorm room and threw her things onto her bed then stood over at her window. A sinking feeling was carved into her chest and she felt nauseas. _That felt disgusting._ She recoiled as she heard someone enter the room. "You're so timid!" She turned around to see Chikane leaning against the doorway.

"Did you end up going to class?" She said with a sincere look of concern on her face. "Um... Why?" Himeko curiously asked. _Why wouldn't I go to class?_ "When you were sleeping, you were moaning and crying. You were even calling out my name. Are you okay?" Himeko's distress ignited. She stared at Chikane with wide eyes "What do you mean?" Himeko asked as she watched Chikane place her books on her desk.

"I wanted to stay until you woke up because you looked so stressed." Chikane sat down and returned Himeko's stare "What were you dreaming about?" _I don't want to say..._ Himeko paused for longer than she knew then felt faint. "Himeko!" Chikane abruptly rushed to catch Himeko as she fainted.

***

Chikane saw beads of sweat running down Himeko's asleep face as she carried her to her bed. _I'm worried about you tonight... I wonder if she's always like this._ She gently placed Himeko onto her bed and sat beside her. _She looks cute when she sleeps. I wonder what she dreams about..._ As she carefully caressed a few strands of her hair, she saw Himeko's lips tremble. _Not the weird things I've been experiencing lately for sure. She's too innocent_.

Chikane tenderly placed her thumb over Himeko's lips and they stopped trembling, instead Himeko unconsciously felt for Chikane's hand and hugged her thumb with her hand. Her eyelids slowly flickered open and met Chikane's caring eyes. "Who are you?" Himeko said in a dazed voice. She quickly recoiled and let go of Chikane's hand. "I'm sorry! I thought you were someone else." _Himeko, you sure are weird..._

"Is something troubling you, Himeko?" Chikane asked Himeko who quickly shook head. She quietly gazed up at Chikane and reassured her "I'm just tired, that's all." Chikane laughed at this. "You've been sleeping most of today, you can't possibly be tired."

Himeko blushed and sat upright. "I'm sorry Chikane."

"You're a poor liar." Chikane said to a red Himeko, then leant her face closer to Himeko's "It's okay, you don't have to tell me what's wrong but tell me if there's anything I could do to make you feel better." The last few words that Chikane said sounded cocky.

"Umm..." Chikane smiled as she got her perfect reaction as Himeko went up in a fiery blaze and looked away. _I love doing that to her, she's so cute when she gets embarrassed._

***

Chikane made her way to a chaise lounge near Himeko and started looking for something in her bag. "So how was your day anyway?" she asked as she fished out a box and placed it next to herself. "It was okay but it was boring for the two classes I love the most in the world." Himeko played with her blanket uneasily as thoughts entered her head of Mrs Junko. _What's going to happen next time? Will she do it again or act like nothing happened?_ _I guess I should be happy, I don't have English for a few days._

Himeko stared at graceful Chikane, one ankle tucked behind the other while looking for something else in her bag. "Don't worry, you'll either get used to it or maybe other teachers will make lessons more enjoyable." Chikane said while preoccupied.

"A-ha! Gotcha! Himeko do you want to come outside for a bit if you're feeling better?" Chikane looked up while having an object clasped in her left hand and the box in the other.

"Yeah, sure." Himeko got out of bed on weak legs and curiously advanced towards Chikane. "What are we doing?"

***

The orange sunset reflected off of the sparkling lake that the two girls faced, sitting on a white bench. "You shouldn't do that... It's really bad for your health, Chikane." Himeko said with a concerned voice. Chikane sideways-glanced at the caring girl as she lit up a cigarette.

"You gotta die of something, right?" She deeply inhaled and smoke dispensed from her mouth as she spoke "I plan to go before I'm twenty eight." Himeko gasped and tugged on Chikane's sleeve.

"Why!?" she shrieked to Chikanes amusement. She laughed and clasped Himeko's hand with her free hand. "Do you want to get old? If it were up to me I'd stay young forever. And you start going bad at about 28." She leaned close to Himeko who could smell the menthol cigarette. "Make it 35 then." Himeko said. "Sure." Chikane replied as she softly kissed Himeko on the forehead.

Himeko's heart fluttered at the uncertain air between them, she could swear it stopped beating when she looked up and saw the light redness spread across Chikane's cheeks. _Why is she so beautiful?_ The reflection of the orange lake obscured itself in the corner of Chikane's eyes. _It just makes me want to reach and out touch her face._..

Himeko stroked Chikane's soft face gazing into her eyes and before she knew it she could feel herself pulling Chikane's face towards hers. The moment their lips touched, Himeko's chest ignited with a strange but wonderful feeling. She didn't know whether it was the menthol or Chikane's softness but she could feel herself pushing harder on Chikane's lips.

Chikane reacted by running her tongue along Himeko's lips, asking for entry.

Her cigarette dropped onto the cement under the bench as Chikane pulled Himeko closer to hold her her arms. The feeling of Himeko against her chest made her heartbeat rapidly. Himeko placed her hand on Chikane's shoulder and nuzzled into her neck.

"I think I like you..."

A/N: So basically all that runs through Chikane's mind is Your so cute! I want another seven reviews before I post the next chapter up ^_^ Arigatou~!

A/N:aaaaand I'm stuck. Writers block sucks so I shall go throw myself against a wall, maybe that will help :D Post some ideas!


	6. Chapter 6

A/N:This chapter is done in Himeko's POV Sorry for the late update I've been busy and away ): I hated how I wrote this chapter the first time and just recovered from writers block. There's a reason I made Chikane out of character, see if you can guess it by the time I actually make it painfully obvious! :D

I woke up that morning to Chikane's secure arms around me. I felt her tepid breath on my neck. She lightly snored and a pale shade of red was lightly painted across her cheeks which contrasted with her dark hair. I don't remember how this happened but I'm frightened of moving.

An awkward sense of belonging filled in my chest and it made my head feel light. It's strange how I haven't known her long and being like this feels like the most wonderful thing in the world.

"I'll come back to you..." What? "But... you've got to look for me... Promise you'll never stop looking for me..."

Chikane's voice was fragile and somewhat shaken... What did these words mean?

She grabbed onto my hand. "Chikane, are you alright?" I lightly stroked her shoulder then she recoiled and her eyes sprang open. Tiny beads of sweat were forming on her forehead. "Chikane?" I said, trying to conceal the concern in my voice.

Chikane buried her face away into the pillow. "I'm fine." She mumbled, half dead to the world. She tilted her perfect head so one half of her face was gazing at me. Her eyes portrayed an endless sea, the beauty sent a shock to my chest. My lips quivered as she drew me closer and pulled me into a deep kiss.

She shifted away and entwined her fingers with mine.

"You talk in your sleep, you know?" I smiled sweetly as Chikane's face erupted into a red blaze. "W-What was I saying?" She asked me. Come to think of it, who was that meant for? Is there another person...? "N-Nothing, I can't remember..." Chikane looked at me doubtfully and sighed.

Chikane kissed me on the forehead "You're a poor liar, Himeko."

I felt my cheeks burning as she closed her azure eyes and smiled. I loved it when she uttered my name, it felt amazing to hear that word even though it's not exceptional at all. Maybe it was because it was the mere fact that she would pay attention to me at all. It shouldn't be possible to have someone so beautiful and special in my life.

Why am I lying in your arms, Chikane? When you can have anyone in the world? You can have any man in the world. I have nothing to offer. Are you using me, Chikane? Why else would you want to be around me. I'm useless though...

Who were those words for? Am I just someone to satisfy that image in your dreams?

"You're beautiful, Himeko..." Chikane said. I could feel tears welling up in my eyes. I don't know where they have come from...

"Don't say that." I found myself snapping at her and pulling away from her embrace. I looked up at Chikane with damp eyes. I saw her face distressed and averted my gaze. "I'm sorry." She said as I lugged myself out of her warm bed. "I'm going to have a shower." I said, trying to hide my shaking voice.

As I paced to the bathroom door I felt her watching eyes at my back.

***

Droplets of hot water cascaded down my back, the shower calmed me down a lot. As I sat on the edge of the bathtub I contemplated to myself.

Why am I so agitated over someone I just met? Moreover why was I in bed with her last night? It's not like we did anything impious but still. And she's a girl! It doesn't matter how beautiful or kind she is, Chikane is a girl and so am I. This cannot go on at all.

I got dressed and made my way into the main room to find that Chikane was gone. Good. I don't think I could bear her looking at me. I decided that I should go to the cafe for breakfast.

***

The tone of the cafe was nice today, cool breeze aired in through an opened window, a red ribbon nonchalantly fluttering in the light wind. It helped me relax a little. I sat down at one of the many empty tables waiting for an order and wondering if Makoto was working right now.

Almost as if she read my mind she sauntered over to my table with a notepad, dressed in her uniform. "Hi Himeko! What would you like today?" I smiled at Makoto's cheerful face, it was nice to see.

I ordered some food and rested my head on my hand as I waited. Out the window the morning sun reflected off of the lake in the distance. I sat there for a while gazing at the sparkling beauty painted across the landscape. There weren't many people out today. Probably for a sleep in. There's not really anything to do in the countryside on a weekend.

And maybe a lot of people went home to see their families.

I want to go visit mine. My parents were away the past few weeks and they didn't really come home to say goodbye. I miss them dearly but sometimes I wonder the only reason they went away and sent me here is because I'm only a burden.

I guess only they know really. I don't blame them either. I sighed as my cake arrived and decided that I didn't want it.

A weird feeling appeared in the pit of my stomach as I continued to sit and stare outside. The room suddenly went cold.

What if that is the real reason? I felt my hand clench under the table and my heart wrenched a little. Nobody really does like me. I'm just a burden to everybody.

"Himeko?" I glanced to the side and saw Chikane standing at the table, fidgeting with a ring she was wearing. "Is it okay if I sit down?" She asked timidly. I nodded and shifted further to the window. "I'm sorry. I don't know what I did to make you snap like that but if you don't want me to tell you something like that then please let me know."

"That's okay." I didn't look at her once.

"Let's not be together right now. I want to get to know you better first." Chikane said. I winced and looked at her. Chikane's sad eyes were glued to the table. I think my heart skipped a beat.

But she suddenly looked up with pleading eyes. "It's not because I don't like you, I really like you a lot but I guess you're unique. Don't take it the wrong way, but I just want to get to know you better."

It's because you don't want me.

For a few seconds I didn't know what to say. Right now, I don't know what I feel. I can't just tell myself this can't happen and then feel so hurt to be told something like that.

I'm so confused...

"...That's okay." I lied to Chikane's relieved face. She tilted her head slightly to the side. After a few seconds she smiled. "Thankyou, I knew you'd understand." She said softly.

"What are you looking at anyway?" Chikane asked as I started to turn my attention back to the lake. I didn't answer but she caught on eventually "It's pretty, isn't it?" She said gazing at the lake. I nodded. "You know what?" She asked.

"What?"

"You should go there at dawn. I've never seen anything more beautiful in my life." Chikane dreamily said "I would give anything to be eternally stuck there. The way that the sky turns a beautiful colour just makes me feel numb..." She continued, smiling slightly with no intention of concealing it.

Somehow I imagined the dawn. The few stars left in the sky and fog lightly spread over the still water. For a second I felt butterflies. "Hey, Himeko? Was there ever a place that you wish you could stay for eternity? Like the rest of the world didn't exist and you, as a solitary being could live for eternity in an enclosed space?"

_Back home, there is a once prosperous school. Now it's abandoned. It hasn't been open in about 25 years. The buildings are run down and when you go on the grounds you don't feel anything but nostalgia. It doesn't matter what memories it brings upon me, I always feel sorrow when I'm there. Somehow I cherish this feeling. There's a rose garden there. Miraculously it's still beautiful. I once ran away there but I was found instantly because I'm always at the rose garden. I wasn't allowed there after that but sometimes in the middle of the night I would sneak out of my house and go there. It made me forget everything. After a while of being there, there's a catonic feeling I get but it feels wonderfu, faintly as if I were being held by the air. Nobody else knew about it, I never told anybody. But one day after I came back from a vacation, all of the roses had died and it was the worst feeling in the world. I would give anything to be there for the rest of my life amongst all of the roses when they were fully bloomed._

"I'd like to see it someday." Chikane said.

I shook my head and looked at the ground "The roses are gone. Who knows what it looks like now. I haven't been there in over a year." I said forlornly.

Chikane laughed a little. "Was it just the roses that made you happy? That place alone is what you cherish. I'd love the dawn even without the lake. It's sort of like a shield." She said.

"What would you need a shield for though?" I asked. You're beautiful and everyone likes you...

"I feel alone. Like I'm waiting for something but I don't know what..."

You are not alone.

Chikane leant in closer and spoke gently.

"All my life I have had dreams about someone. I feel their touch but they have no face or name. Like my life depends on finding this person. I don't know why but it hurts to think about... I sound crazy don't I..."

I shook my head. "You don't sound crazy." The last thing I wanted in the world was for anyone to find out I've been experiencing the same thing.

"Thankyou. Consider yourself lucky." Chikane said lightheartedly. "Why?" I asked.

"You're the first person that I've told that to." She said.

_Now that I think about it, I wonder if everyone dreams about the same thing... Eternally searching for their ideal person. It's sort of like constantly grasping at an illusion. Is there someone out there for everybody? Like a fated other? Or was she just an ideal in the back of my mind? I wish I knew everything, but I promise myself I won't get my hopes up and look for someone that for all I know cannot exist._

We're only chasing ideals.

A/N: I've got only 284 words on the next chapter -_- Reason being I've started at school again and I've been playing the xbox every other hour, I'll try and get this done by the end of this week.


	7. damndamndamn

I can't finish chapter seven until after the holidays because I left my damn usb at school.  
So unless my brother goes and gets it tomorrow (which I highly doubt he will) I can't update.

No amount of words can describe how annoyed at myself right now. I was almost finished too.

I promise I will beat him up if he doesn't get it and I'm going to beat him up until he promises he's gonna go get it!

damndamndamndamndamn


	8. Chapter 8

_I wonder if Chikane really does feel alone like she says? I'm sure a lot of people like her; I wonder what it's like to be admired by people? They way Makoto reacted when Chikane asked for them to sit together was fascinating, as if she wasn't expecting to not be looked down upon. Maybe it's tiresome to have everyone respect you to the point you're abruptly better than everybody else._

_I wonder who she sees in her dreams, does everyone dream of the same thing? Maybe everyone's subconscious wants a significant other. Even with a tough exterior, somewhere inside they are yearning for someone else._

Chikane still sat across from Himeko, probably reconsidering the fact that she just shared something so gauche with her.

The air between them was silenced, laced with uneasiness. Maybe neither of them knew what to say.

_I'm the first person she has ever told, am I meant to feel appreciated?_

"Chikane… Why did you tell me that?" Himeko asked, inquisitively; somewhat craving the answer.

"I think I can trust you, can I? You won't think of me any differently, will you?" Chikane said, smiling and leaning in towards Himeko.

Himeko knew that Chikane was teasing her at this point.

"Of course I won't," Himeko said "I'm happy to have you trust!" she closed her eyes and smiled cheerfully, like it meant something. Maybe for the first time since she arrived.

Chikane leant in and grinned cheerfully. "Now you get to know my dark and brooding past!"

Himeko knew she was joking at this point, and forcefully laughed even though she didn't find it very funny.

***

A few hours later, Himeko sat on her bed reading. Chikane had to go to a school council meeting. _I wonder why she attends such things on the weekend, she must be really dedicated._ She said that they were planning the annual school ball, which was to happen about a month from now.

_Why do they hold a school ball? Isn't this an all girls school? This is as absurd as an all boys school having an annual ball. I don't think I'll go anyway, I have no dresses or anything. No money either until my parents come back from overseas._

Himeko realised that she had missed half her page from thinking and decided her mind was too occupied to continue reading.

Instead, she put her book down on the bedside table and promenaded to Chikanes desk. Everything was so neat. A few photo frames were propped up against the wall, one in particular caught her interest.

Chikane was at some kind of formal event, you could tell it was her by her hair, even though it was a bit longer when the photograph was taken. You could only see the back of her, she was waltzing with a handsome man, his face told Himeko he was in his mid-twenties. He had his hand placed firmly, yet gently on Chikanes waist, their fingers entwined. Her aquamarine dress quivered around her ankles as they danced on that night.

"Having fun?" Chikane startled Himeko as she walked into the quiet room. "I-I'm sorry Chikane!" Himeko's voice quivered as she stepped away from her desk. Chikane looked slightly surprised "It's okay Himeko I don't mind." Chikane slowly walked over to Himeko and put her arms around the petrified girl. "That's Yukihito." She said as she nodded in the direction of the photograph.

Himeko softened a little and turned to look at the photo. Chikane looked stunning, as if she were a princess at a ball. Her hair shined in the light and her dress had been captured in a motion that looked as if it were flowing like running water.

"Are you jealous, Himeko?" Himeko responded with furious blushing, despite the fact that Chikane had only asked humorously. Himeko violently shook her head as if it was the exact opposite. Chikane laughed and a red tinge spread across her face. She leant into Himeko's ear "You are, aren't you?"

Chikane laughed to herself and let go of Himeko. "I'm only joking."

_What's with Chikane right now? She's acting strange..._

"Yukihito was my tutor when I was very young. He lives in America now but visits every now and then, like the time that this photo was taken." Chikane said, intently looking at the photo. "He's only around ten years older than I am, but he was a genius, a young scholar now."

Himeko nodded as she listened to Chikane speak.

"Where was this?" Himeko asked without realising, this man was intriguing.

"My family had a party, to celebrate the future arranged marriage of he and I." Chikane said with a hint of sadness in her voice.

"Arranged marriage!?" Himeko couldn't stop herself from crying out; she quickly covered her mouth in mortification.

"Yes, it's my family's tradition. I am to marry him quite soon actually."

_She never mentioned that._

"Yukihito comes from a wealthy background. Even so; I don't feel any attraction towards him, it will be a marriage to make my father happy." She continued.

"Are you okay with this?" Himeko asked, again without thinking.

"I guess so, I just want to make my family happy."

_You guess so?_

"Are you truly so selfless, Chikane?" Himeko asked as she sat down.

Chikane stayed silent and hung her head, after a little while she made a little squeaking noise in her throat.

"I'm sorry, I won't look at your things again…" Himeko felt a painful sadness… had she upset Chikane?

"It's okay Himeko, it cannot be helped." Chikane fixed her posture and ran a hand through Himeko's hair. "You should feel at home." Chikane looked into Himeko's eyes meaningfully.

_It is where I'm living for now after all._

Chikane glanced at the photo and looked as if she just remembered something.

"Ah, would you like to come find a dress for the ball next weekend? It's only a few weeks away you know." She asked while looking intently at Himeko.

"No, it's okay I don't think I will be attending anyway... I don't have money until my parents return from overseas."

Chikane looked a little sad as the blonde said this but then smiled.

"It'll make me so happy if you would come Himeko, you could pay back the money later if I bought you a dress." Chikane said politely.

Himeko felt her face burning up as it turned a deep red. "I-I'm sorry Chikane I could not take your money from you."

"It's not taking my money, I would just like you to come along…" The raven haired beauty tilted her head to the side in an innocent manner that made Himeko blush even more.

Chikane smiled when she got the reaction she desired and spoke again "So would you like to come along Himeko-chan?" Defeated by Chikanes charm, Himeko nodded. "I'll pay you back as soon as my parents return, but I hope they're willing to give me money…" she said fidgeting with her hair.

Chikane smiled "You're so cute Himeko."

***

Later, Chikane had made some tea and said she had to go run an errand. Himeko decided she would go for a wander even though it was dark, just to explore the grounds. The beautiful surroundings were somewhat calming, and the coldness meant nobody else would be outside.

Something that Himeko liked about the school was that the curfew only applied to outside the school grounds. Maybe it was convenient to some? It didn't really matter to Himeko as long as she could enjoy what was now her new home.

_I don't want Chikane to buy me things, it will just be a burden on my parents to pay her back… Sure, they have lots of money but I don't want to annoy them. I could imagine the look that they would give me. Scold me. It hurts._

_I don't want to have to worry about these things; I wish I could have my own place isolated from the world and the harsh judgement of others. I understand Chikane cares about me… I want to be with her._

Himeko felt her heart wrench, she held her hand to her beating heart and felt tears in her eyes.

_Leave me alone, I wanna be alone._

_Don't leave me behind. Stay by me._

She heard footsteps in the distance and decided to stop in bare hope that it might be Chikane.

They got louder, sounding more like heels clicking on the cement path.

"Michiyuki."

Himeko's heart stopped, afraid to turn around as Mrs. Junko stood beside her, the stench of strong perfume and cigarettes invaded the cold air.

A/N: Oh no~ Junko has Himeko in an isolated area AT NIGHT D:  
I'm sorry for the late update I had to rewrite it ALL in a matter of days. Well I'm going to get into serious storyline soon. Review me~ Reviews motivate me to update!


	9. Chapter 9

R&R please~ I didn't get that many reviews last chapter *sniffles*  
Sad Kaze is sad.  
Nayu-chaaaan I was joking, it's a smut. But notrly :3 or IS it!? But seriously, I'm not gonna update this again until you update your NejiTen fic. Or until I get more reviews :3 nyahahahahaha

Chapter eight.

"Why, Michiyuki we meet again. What are you doing out so late?" Mrs Junko's voice echoed throughout the empty paved pathway. Nothing surrounded them but leaves that fluttered and danced in the icy breeze. A feeling of ill-will swelled in the air; Himeko tried to back away "I-I uh was just going back to my dorm now. Goodnight m-miss." She stuttered in fear of the woman. She was tall, even though not so much taller than Himeko it still felt like she was towering over her.

"Someone who is out so late at night can not be up to anything good, can they?" Mrs Junko grabbed hold of Himeko's wrist and pulled her closer. The look in her eyes was hostile and ominous. "N-No please let go of me! P-please!"

The grip around her wrist tightened, she was close enough for Himeko to feel her breath on her neck which smelt like cigarettes and alcohol. "Why should I? You're just going to cause trouble any way, aren't you Himeko?" She whispered into her ear.

"No! I'll go back to my dorm please I need to go!" Himeko tried to scream but her voice seemed to be trapped in her throat. She felt tears of panic swelling her violet eyes as she was pulled closer. A freezing hand slid down the top of Himeko's pants.

She recoiled and pulled her hand away as soon as she heard a phone ring loudly. Mrs Junko cursed vociferously and hit the hang up button hard. "Go away." She hissed as she glared at Himeko who was already on the run. She tripped over her own feet and grazed her elbow deeply. She quickly scrambled up and continued to run away.

"You can't live to tell anyone." She muttered quietly under her breath, lighting a cigarette as she watched the blonde run away.

Himeko panted frantically as the door slammed behind her. Tears streamed down her face and her heart pounded as she looked up to see a wide-eyed Chikane looking up from her book in a surprised manner.

"Hi-Himeko...?" Chikane said in a concerned voice as she stood up to face Himeko from across the room but the blonde turned away and anxiously tried to decide whether she was going to run straight back out the door or stay with Chikane.

What if _she_ was out there?

The lump in Himeko's throat grew larger as Chikane came closer to her, without thinking she pushed Chikane out of the way and ran to the bathroom crying.

She locked the door behind her and collapsed to the ground. Chikane was softly knocking on the door and trying to coax Himeko in a calming, gentle voice.

"Himeko, please come out I want to know what is wrong." She said soothingly.

"I-I'm fine! I just got chased by a dog, that's all." She stuttered, trying to regain her composure after what just happened. Suddenly, she started to notice the graze on her elbow that throbbed with pain. The little blonde yelped and it caused Chikane to knock harder, the bluenette engulfed in worry.

"Himeko, please... What if you're hurt?" Himeko gave into her pleas and slowly stood up to face the door.

Gradually, she opened it little by little until she saw Chikane staring at her tear-soaked face. "Himeko... You're obviously not okay..." She reached out to touch her but was refused as Himeko recoiled and looked away.

She lifted her hands to wipe away her tears and smile a little. "I'm sorry Chikane I got a little carried away." She saw the uncovered graze on Himeko's elbow and cradled the skin around it in her hands.

"Oh my, your skin is cold! Would you like me to bandage this up for you?" Chikane asked, staring at the blood so evidently running down her arm.

Himeko reluctantly nodded, somewhat craving Chikane's attention.

"So what really happened?" Chikane asked, only just finishing putting the bandage on Himeko.

_I can't tell her what happened! I don't want her to worry about me- I'll deal with it myself_ _without Chikane._

Himeko quickly tried to think up a story and went with her dog lie.

"W-well I was taking a walk and a big dog came out of nowhere and attacked me!" Himeko lied, she couldn't meet Chikane's eyes properly. Chikane nodded and smiled "I'll bring it up with the school council, we'll find this dog and deal with it."

Himeko flinched causing pain in her elbow but ignored it. "I- Uh don't worry Chikane! Some boys came out and chased it away. It's really all okay!" She tried to laugh and waved her hands out in front of her face.

Chikane narrowed her eyes and nodded. "Okay, I believe you Himeko." She said, not oblivious to the fact that this _is _an all girl's school. She knew she was going to find out what was wrong but she was going to have to wait until later. It seemed that right now was not a good time at all.

Himeko lay awake in bed, anxiety impended her mind as she thought about the events of tonight. What was going to happen in English in her next lesson? Is Mrs Junko going to try anything again?

Thoughts stirred in her mind, loss of sleep seemed inevitable at this rate. She turned on her side to face Chikane in her bed.

Moonlight shone on her delicate face and her hair was sprawled across the bed. She looked like a dreaming angel. Himeko's heart fluttered at the mere sight. She wanted to go over to her but the sight was too beautiful to disturb.

_Beautiful Chikane._

Himeko found herself drifting to sleep as she watched Chikane in her deep slumber. A dream carried her off into another world, one that felt so familiar. Like she wanted to stay there.

'_This- This is the rose garden! Yet... It seems so different.'_

_I found myself where I would usually enter the garden. I was holding some kind of object, yet I had no idea what it was. Bells could be heard in the distance, yet I continued to stare at the hedge._

_Illegible voices could be heard in the background, they could not be understood. Smiling, I looked around and climbed into the hedge. I looked up and saw a clear figure._

'_Chi-! It's Chikane!'_

_She was beautiful, she gazed into her tea with a look of sadness in her eyes. After a while, her gaze was finally shifted to me._

"_Please." She smiled._

_Himeko felt a surge of happiness throughout her body. I took out a camera and took a picture of Chikane. She looked so elegant and calm._

_We just sat and talked idle chatter it was. I had no idea what was said, but it was enjoyable all the same._

_Though she seemed different somehow, a Chikane that wasn't... Chikane..._

_She looked up and smiled and I felt myself fading from this world..._

Himeko woke up to bright sunlight. She shielded her eyes and looked around. No rose garden, and Chikane was nowhere to be seen. She sighed and pulled herself from under the covers. Glancing at the clock, she saw that it was only 6am.

As much as she wanted to go back to bed she should probably get up in case she might sleep in this time. Chikane was away which probably meant she was at a meeting.

Himeko suddenly cringed remembering last night.

Maybe it was all just a bad dream?

She shuddered at the cold air coming in through the open window and rubbed her hands along her arms, upsetting the graze. _No such luck. _She felt lucky not to have language today.

"Himeko? Are you up?" She heard Chikane call as she opened the door.

She looked up to see Chikane with one of her hands carrying about two bags. "Uh- Yes, do you need any help?" She pulled herself out of bed to go over to Chikane to help her with the bags.

"Thankyou." Chikane said as they both propped the bags on the table. "What's in the bags?" Himeko asked. Chikane smiled and took some things out the bags. "I bought some breakfast for us."

Chikane thought that this would be a good time to find out what happened last night. It's too occupied in the café.

"Aw! You got cake slice!" Himeko immediately felt the cold go away as she reached to get it out of the bag.

Chikane laughed loudly and spoke "If you eat those kinds of things in the morning you'll get fat Hime!"

Himeko froze.

_D-Did Chikane just call me Hime?_

"You seem put off that cake for some reason." Chikane said, breaking the silence.

_She just shortened my name!_

Himeko couldn't help but laugh with joy. "Chikane you're so cute!" she said without saying, then quickly covered her mouth.

"Eh? Oh it's okay Himeko." She said while she blushed deeply as she set breakfast out on the small dining table for two.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter nine.  
--

Himeko sat next to the bluenette at the small dining table, her soft leg ever so discreetly brushing against Chikanes. Himeko felt herself blushing deeply and her heart pounding. She smelt so nice and her skin was so delicate. The smell of French toast wafted through the air and it reminded Himeko of how hungry she was.

"Say, Himeko?" Chikane said causing Himeko to look up from her food with a half-full mouth. She laughed seeing that Himeko had a small crumb of food on her face.

"Here." She said as she picked up a napkin and wiped the crumb off of Himeko's blushing face.

"I-I'm sorry Chikane!" Himeko said as she covered her face in embarrassment. "It's okay Himeko, you don't need to say sorry." Chikane laughed, taking Himeko's hands in her own and lowering them from her face.

"I just wanted to ask you, you do know that this is an all girl's school right?" she asked gently causing Himeko to look up in panic.

"O-Of course I do, Chikane! How could I not?" She said, unable to look Chikane in the eye. She knew something was wrong, why on Earth would she ask questions like that otherwise?

"Then what were boys doing on school grounds? Let _alone_ chasing dogs." She smiled.

Himeko's chest tightened.

_Chikane doesn't believe me- Of course she doesn't! You idiot Himeko!_

"I-ah- they were teachers, Chikane." She said defensively, cursing herself inside for thinking up something like that on the spot. Right now, she just wanted to leave.

"Himeko, we do not have male teachers here." Chikane frowned and looked straight ahead. "There are no males at this school because the two that defeated the Orochi were _women, _priestesses of the lunar shrine. They reincarnate into their next lives only to meet their cruel fate time and time again. This school is a devotion to that legend." She seemed to be getting a little bothered. Her eyes were now fixed on Himeko's.

"Would you mind telling me the truth now?" She asked politely while taking Himeko's hands in her own.

Himeko took her hands back and shook her head without saying a word. She placed her clenched fists in her lap and stood up. "I'm sorry..."

She proceeded to her wardrobe and grabbed some clothes out and walked towards the bathroom. _What if Mrs Junko were to find out that I told Chikane? What would she do? What would Chikane do...?_

"Himeko wait!" Chikane yelled as Himeko closed the door behind her.

_What on earth is keeping her from telling me? I hope something terrible didn't happen... Himeko would tell me, right?_

_Chikane… Chikane…_

Himeko tried to throw her clothes on but her hands were shaking. She fumbled the clothes and dropped them constantly. When she finally managed to get them on, she looked in the mirror.

_I've got to come out of here eventually… But what am I going to tell her? What will she do?_

Tears streamed down her face as she panicked and fidgeted.

_She'll get angry because I didn't tell her… Why did I feel the need to lie to her? Maybe she can do something about it!_

Himeko decided that it would be best to tell Chikane. After all, she would be more capable of bringing this up with another teacher than Himeko. But did she really want that?

_Of course I do! _

Himeko swung open the door.

"Chikane!"

The bluenette was nowhere to be seen. The dining table that she was sitting at was now empty, except for the cake left on the table. Himeko looked around the room and sighed in disappointment. She could have kicked herself for not coming out with it straight away but inside, she was a little thankful. Only something like this could have suppressed the sinking feeling deep in her stomach.

She threw herself of a chair and sighed once again. She glanced over at the cake and smiled. At least she knew that Chikane wasn't mad at her.

She stood up and took a place at the dining table and played with the strawberries on top of the cream with a fork with her head resting in her other hand.

Her feelings had been retuned, now back to pondering whether she should tell Chikane or not. Her confidence was lost the second she could not see Chikane.

What was she gonna tell her anyway?

"Hey Chikane! By the way, my language teacher was gonna touch me in my special place but her phone rang so it's all good!" Himeko dropped her fork and buried her head in her arms. She probably won't be so lucky next time.

"What kind of teacher does that!?" She quietly hissed to herself.

She felt a lump forming in her throat, she stood up and put the cake in the fridge; she didn't exactly feel like eating it right now. Instead she thought she should go for a wander.

Chikane walked quickly down the freezing empty corridors, trying to reach her destination as fast as possible with nothing but Himeko on her mind.

_What is she keeping from me? Maybe I should stay out of it if it's family issues… But it can't be that! Why would she have a graze on her leg from her family? Was it true about the dog following her? There are some manly looking students here I guess… Why do I have this feeling that something bad happened? Do I wish that something bad happened to Himeko? No, something is wrong but for now I'm just going to stay out of it and wait for her to tell me._

She sighed and walked a little slower, she needed all of this off of her mind. She could worry about it later.

She reached a door that read 'Meeting Room' and entered, her mind still overwhelmed with thoughts of Himeko.

She walked in to see the student council already deep in conversation. "I'm sorry I'm late!" Chikane chirped as she took her place among the students.

They were talking about the upcoming school dance, they decided that tomorrow morning, the class representative will be in charge of asking people in their class who would like to participate in helping set up and plan the ball.

The rest was a blur; this wasn't good for the head of student council.

"Chikane, are you alright?" She quickly lifted her head up to see a dark haired girl, along with the rest of the students looking her way.

"I'm fine. I just didn't get much sleep last night." She smiled and lied. Some nodded, and they all continued talking. Chikane temporarily forgot about what was happening and forced herself to concentrate on the council.

_It's cold outside..._

The sun shined but the air was unexpectedly icy. Himeko sat on a bench alone watching a few students walk together. Only a few clouds hung overhead, it kind of made the school look beautiful.

She saw Chikane apparently walking back to their dormitory with a few people surrounding her. She obviously looked exhausted but they continued to follow her. She didn't seem to notice Himeko as she walked straight past her.

"Chikane! Do you want to have lunch together today?"

"Can we go to your dormitory?"

"Who's your roommate Chikane?"

Himeko felt a little sad as Chikane still smiled and replied graciously yet not so accurately to their questions, letting them follow her. She was nice to them as they persisted being around her. Doesn't she ever get tired of it?

_Is she struggling to put up with me?_

At that moment Himeko realised she wasn't confused about her feelings anymore, that they weren't abnormal.

_Does everyone feel the same way about Chikane? I-I like her... Even though she's another girl, so does everyone else..._

Her heart sank as she watched Chikane walk away. _She's not concerned about me at all... She's just being nice. All of those girls probably have a better chance than me._

_How many other girls has she been with? Is that why she said she wanted to get to know me better? Because I'm not that person she's searching for? Of course I'm not! How can I be so stupid?_

**A/N: This chapter is kinda short, I think I'll be able to update this pretty soon. Like, within a week and a half or something. Leave reviews~**


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 10.

Himeko stood outside her dormitory room fishing her keys from her pocket. She turned them in the lock; anxious about whether Chikane will be in there or not. She opened the door to see Chikane sprawled across her bed, her long hair spread out along the covers with Goosebumps covering her legs. She vacantly stared at the roof.

"Himeko?" Chikane discarded herself from her daydream; she quickly sat up and stared at Himeko.

A few seconds passed before she spoke. "I'm sorry for pushing you to tell me what was wrong today... It's none of my business." She dropped herself on her side and rested her head on her arms, still looking at Himeko with an intent stare.

"I-it's okay Chikane…" Himeko walked over to her bed and threw herself on it, trying to forget that she was still in the room with Chikane.

"Um… Himeko? Do you mind closing the curtains? I want to sleep for a while…" Chikane gestured towards the open curtains next to Himeko's bed. She nodded and got up to close the curtains then dropped herself back down into her own bed.

The next few hours were spent in silence; the only sound was Chikane's light snore and the occasional loud footsteps travelling down the dorm hall. A few times, she stirred between the sheets with flushed cheeks and a frown painted across her face. Himeko couldn't help but look, the last few hours she'd stared at the roof in silence, drifting in and out of sleep. She lay on her side and watched the distressed looking Chikane, tossing up whether she should go wake her up or leave her...

"Hi-Himeko-!" Chikane grasped her blankets as her eyes slowly fluttered open.

_Himeko? _The blonde quickly averted her eyes but looked back to see Chikane gazing at her with tears in her eyes.

For what seemed like an eternity, their gazes locked, those blue eyes pulled Himeko into an abyss...

Out of the blue, Chikane stood up clutching the quilt around her and paced towards Himeko's bed, her bottom lip quivering tenderly. She stopped and stood in front of Himeko.

"Can I come in...?" She said, evidently ignorant of the fact that she was calling Himeko's name.

"Sure..." The surprised Himeko lifted the covers up so Chikane could climb in. "I'm sorry..." Chikane nestled herself in Himeko's arms, oblivious to the blonde's unyielding blushing.

_She's kind of cute like this..._

"I had a nightmare..." Chikane whispered childishly into Himeko's chest. She nestled closer with closed eyes.

It forced Himeko to wonder what she dreamt about as Chikane slowly fell back into slumber. She looked helpless and vulnerable in that state. She differentiated so much from wide-awake Chikane; who would think a little nightmare would make her act like this?

The blue haired girl was already fast asleep; her face nestled into Himeko's pulsating chest.

"Ch-Chikane?" She waited a little bit and smiled. For that period of time she felt truly blissful.

She entwined her fingers with Chikane's and let herself fall into slumber.

That afternoon was spent in respite. Chikane inaudibly studied at her desk after she oh-so inadequately woke up to find she had crawled into Himeko's arms while she was half asleep. Himeko stopped laughing about how red Chikane was after what seemed like quite a while for the bluenette.

Himeko quietly watched from afar, prodding in the pantry for something to eat but remembered the cake. "Say, Chikane?" she lifted her head from her studies and looked quizzically at Himeko. "We still have the cake from this morning! Do you want to have some?"

Chikane smiled and stood up to go grab the cake from the fridge. She placed it on the table and gestured for Himeko to sit with her. She happily obliged and sat with her taking plates from the cupboards with her.

They sat happily and ate, even so, Chikane looked troubled. "Chikane, are you okay?" Himeko tilted her head to the side to see Chikane's dispirited looking face. She looked up to see Himeko's violet eyes and smiled.

"I'm okay Himeko, but you have cream on your face." She stifled a laugh and handed Himeko a napkin. Himeko blushed and tried to hide her embarrassment but wiped the wrong side.

Chikane smiled a little more and took Himeko's jaw in her soft hands. "Wrong." She said as she drew Himeko closer to her lips and gently kissed the cream off of Himeko's warm skin.

"Chi- Chikane!" her face ignited in crimson.

Chikane's fingers slowly slipped in between Himeko's, her pleading blue eyes looking up towards those violet gems.

_That was… Unexpected…_

"I'm sorry!" She pulled away reluctantly letting go of her hands.

_Stop..._

Chikane looked away and stood up to walk in the other direction.

_Stop-_

Himeko stood up and followed Chikane.

_Stop leading me on like that…_

Himeko grabbed a surprised Chikane's hand and pulled her back towards her. She put her arms around her and held her in a tight embrace.

"Do you like me… Or not?" She buried her face into Chikane's chest and felt her throat tighten a considerable amount.

Speechless, Chikane just looked down at Himeko and smiled. She lifted up Himeko's head with her fingers and looked into her eyes.

Himeko could feel Chikane's heart pounding against her ribcage as did her own; she stayed silent for a few seconds, hungering for Chikane to speak.

Though nothing hung in the air but silence.

"Chikane?"

_I could hold her all for all of eternity, for all I wanted, though I could never call her my Himeko. My beautiful, cheerful Himeko. Because of Yukihito… Because of my family._

_Hell, even if I wasn't to be married off I still couldn't have her… What would my father and father say? God forbid the rogue Ikuzawa giving her heart to another female._

Chikane felt herself pull Himeko closer as she let go of her chin. She felt a few estranged tears roll down her cheeks.

"I'm sorry." Himeko said as she let go of her.

_No-_

She outstretched her hand towards Himeko's back, grasping at thin air. She knew she couldn't voice her feelings, she knew that she couldn't destroy this than she already had previously, even giving herself false hope with each kiss. Giving Himeko false hope with each word that she said.

"Himeko…" She said under her breath to the evidently hurt blonde.

_Ever since she came to this school, she's seemed so sad… The first time I saw her I never imagined I would feel so strongly. That when I first saw her in my dorm room I would smile to myself and even be glad to be sharing a room with her… But her timidness towards me faded and I could ever see was sadness in her eyes and I could be sure it's my fault. My fault for leading her on even when I know quite well I cannot be with her._

Even with her back turned she could feel the tears, Chikane felt that she could mar herself, tear herself to pieces after hurting Himeko like that.

She was just so fragile, it was in her eyes.

When she was encased in her dreams, she saw a fragile girl like Himeko… And the nostalgic feeling that overwhelmed her when she saw Himeko's face like that made her want to give her the world.

_If there was any way I could make it up to you, I would give it to you tenfold. I would put my heart and soul into it- my whole being I would give to make you happy… All but being with you…_

The quiet closing of a door was heard. And with that, she was gone.

_I'm sorry…_

**A/N: I'm sorry for this painfully long authors note and the lack of story length in this chapter. Believe me, it was even shorter before I started expanding on everything. There were a few things I needed to get out of the way. Firstly, I never realised how many mistakes I have made in this, apart from the numerous typos, the photography teacher is male and I just had had Chikane practically shoot off at Himeko about lying about males -.- now I have to make a damn excuse and find some way to put it into the story. Also… 2 weeks my ass -.- you want to know what happened to my usb? It was stuck in mud, possibly run over by a car several times. So I lost it for a few days and miraculously, it still works! Or this chapter would have taken a lot longer to do. There's another thing. I have less time to work on everything because I'm behind on my work at school and need to write Hyne knows how many essays -_- Well R&R And I'll try to update quicker.**


	12. Chapter 12

Sorry, no chapter as of now. I am going away to South Australia and staying at my relative's house, therefore no updates. I'm halfway through the chapter but I'm going to have to change the rating when I update next which may or may not give you a clue as to why I am not going to continue while wasting away the boring days there. But I'll bring it just in case.

Farewell for now~


	13. Chapter 13

**You know, I should really get off fanfiction and get on fictionpress more and write about the misadventures of my USB, wear it around my neck and call it a lucky charm. How many chapters out of this story have I moaned about the unfortunate events of my poor yuri bus?**

**Also, there is a rape warning for this chapter. Although not very explicit I'll warn you anyway. On with the story.**

Chapter 11

Chikane's POV.

When I awoke the next day, the guilty feeling in the pit of my stomach from last night had not subsided one bit. From where I stood, I gazed at the blonde sleeping angel. With each breath her chest expanded and contracted, chest gently moving up and down. Maybe it would not have looked so gloomy if the sunlight that shone in from her window was present this morning. Instead, all that was there to greet us was the grey clouds and mist much like that weather on the day that I met Himeko.

From the moment I met her, I decided she was perfect. A pretty name, an unconditional kindness that glimmered in her violet eyes, though behind them was the ghost of faith in herself. Those eyes reflect such low self-worth and from the first time I looked into them, I knew that I wanted to make her happy and accept herself. Though-

I've done nothing... If anything I've made it hell for her...

My own petty desires and feelings just smeared a dark stain on my original intentions. Though I still stand here and lay eyes on Himeko as though she were the only human left in this world.

I try to peel away my eyes and after what seems an eternity, I pull myself from that mesmerizing grasp she emits and head towards the bathroom to shower and prepare myself for the day ahead.

In the courtyard, even though it was dawn- there were a few girls wandering around- none of them astray. Some held hands, some kept their distance from their counterpart, a few linked arms while a couple simply walked side by side. None of them walked alone as I did.

I received a few questioning looks- '_the Chikane Ikuzawa_' walking alone in the schoolyard. Though nobody dared to steer themselves in my direction for there was most likely a scowl spreading across my face with every curious look thrown at me. You could say I was in a terrible mood, yes. Though it is my fault and my fault alone. If anyone is going to ask me what's wrong I might just go crazy. _'Oh, no! Chikane Ikuzawa gone crazy?' _

I merely laugh on the inside at the thought. Maybe I could try to change... It wouldn't hurt Himeko so much- though there would be a commotion. I want to call the damn wedding off and destroy whoever introduced that tradition into the Ikuzawa family. What a wonderful notion.

Honestly, I've never been able to be myself except for when I'm around Himeko. Maybe it's because she's my roommate? That's probably what made me want to be myself in the first place. If I had a roommate who actually had an idea of how high standing my family is on the social ranks I would probably go completely insane with stirring emotions waiting to rupture. The poor girl who would have had the misfortune of sharing a room with me would be frightened to death.

Though all of these thoughts are to merely dance around in my head until someone knocks some sense into me; right now I want to visit my lake. There shouldn't be anyone around there, well where I'll be going. I made sure nobody knows about it. I left no waypoint, I followed the route many, many times until I knew the way by heart. I could see everyone around the lake, yet nobody could see me.

I made sure nobody saw me as I swiftly made my way through an old rusted gate around the back of the gymnasium and followed a path of overgrown weeds and untended plants until I found myself at a dead end, a barrier of a rusted steel fence between the enclosure and the green forest. Again, I looked around for unwelcome guests and slid through an opening in the fence covered by an old dirty sign that faintly read 'Do not enter' for it has faded from the sunlight and now the only thing that had not been colour deprived was the plants garnishing its steel plate.

It took all of two minutes to trek through the overgrown weeds, making sure I did not trip over a branch. It was obvious that this had once been a place that had been built on- little stone shrines could be seen, their heads only peeking through the damp fauna. Maybe the only reason I knew of these was because I once stubbed the tip of my shoe on one. It's funny how the week after, it was announced that I was to marry Yukihito.

Now I take absolute care not to tread on them, which proved to be pretty easy for it seemed they were used to guide a path that had probably once been here.

Once I had arrived, everything here was as peaceful as ever. The water flowed calmly to where the grey rocks separated land from water. The tiny ripples lapped against the rocks made a quiet noise, only heard if you were to concentrate and block out every other sound. Being here instantly calmed me down. There is not a place in the world I would rather be right now.

I have always wondered what this place may have been used for. About two-hundred metres to my right there was a worn down shrine. It was not anything fancy at all. I guess that it was a place of worship although I cannot put my finger on what for.

It may have been for the miko- though there was nothing there to really prove that. The shrine was in a completely different style to the one in town. Nor was it anything like the one on the moon that I had read about in books.

That one was a grey colour, while this one was a dark coloured kind of wood- adorned with patterns engraved into it like I had never seen before. Although in this town, the miko are the only known deity's worthy of worship. That is probably why this place is so secluded. All I can do is sigh and muse endlessly.

After about half an hour, the school population seems to fill the grounds- the only people not around were the ones who were sleeping in or have an aversion to sunlight or something. Trust me, there are people like that here.

I took my packet of cigarettes out of my pocket and stuck four or five in the ground beneath me and started to light them, one by one. The smell kind of grew on me when I started burning things for the shrine all the way over there. I'm not actually sure why I began though. Whether it be subconscious pyromaniac tendencies or there's some sort of spirit here bending my will, it gave me a strange feeling inside to burn anything that gave off a little bit of smoke.

Once, my geography teacher gave us this whole speech about how she was going to quit smoking, start a new life, mindless crap like that. She went as far as throwing her cigarettes out of the window to make her point. I'm not exactly sure why it dawned on her that she was going to do that but I went outside in curiosity and got the idea that I wanted to burn them near the shrine.

Maybe for good luck? Repenting for tripping over a tiny stone shrine? The way that the human mind works is a mystery to any normal person.

I think that I want to go back now, say sorry to Himeko for not saying anything. I'm going to explain everything to her- I know she'll understand. She has the kind of unyielding compassion that could match… A god of mercy or something like that.

But it'll have to wait till later. There's no time for things like that now. We wouldn't want a cute girl being flustered all the way through school, would we?

Himeko's POV

Today, I'm going to start over with Chikane! I feel a little better after sleeping last night; it also gave me a little time to think- I don't need to become _that_ close to Chikane. If I just try to stop thinking of her as someone I like then I think we could be great friends!

If only I could recite that over to myself over and over again, I may perhaps let it sink into this thick head of mine.

School is going to start soon so there's really no time for that now. I've already gotten ready- albeit after getting up 20 minutes later than I should have.

I wonder if I should go find Chikane, we both have math together first. I know! She's probably at the lake… She said that's where she always likes to be! But what if I'm late for homeroom? It doesn't matter; it's not as if I haven't already made a fool of myself before.

I snatched up my books and rushed out of the dorms to search for Chikane with a smile on my face. I'm in a surprisingly good mood today, could be the fact I fell straight asleep as soon as I got back to the dorms.

The cold breeze hits my face as a few girls look at me- maybe it's unusual to be in such a hurry in the morning. Even if this school likes to seem uptight, they sure take it easy with time- is it even possible for one of them to be late for class?

No matter, I'll try and get to the lake quickly so I will have more time alone with Chikane!

When I arrived at the lake, I couldn't find Chikane anywhere. I asked around- even if they saw Chikane in the music room. A few said that they saw her head towards the gymnasium- yet they advised me not to follow her. I wonder if she's okay?

If she wants to be alone then I should let her…

Suddenly, I heard a heard the bell sound, and simultaneously the students started piling towards the building. In all the time I've been asking around I've wasted a considerable amount of time. Maybe I'll find her at lunch. All I have to do now is go to English class.

As I made my way through the corridors, I mused to myself that they needed to be a lot bigger. It's too crowded to make ones way to class safely. Where I'm headed is all the way on the other side of the building. I'm being repeatedly shoved, almost tripping over more than once or twice. Could it be the sheer desire to be punctual and on time to class that one would be so violent just to make their way through the corridors? I think that if nobody shoved then there wouldn't be any problems.

In the period of a split second I saw a foot from the side appear in front of me- I had no time to think about its appearance because before I knew it, I was falling flat to the floor- my books spread out all around me and the papers fluttering and falling to the space around my body.

As I got a forehead full of cold floor, countless legs were scattered around me.

"Isn't that the girl who rooms with Chikane?"

Many voices surrounded me- none of them coming closer to help me up. I truly do wish that they would stop crowding me like I was an animal from the zoo.

"Himeko!" A familiar voice called from inside of the crowd as she pushed her way through and held out a hand.

"Thanks, Makoto." I said while Makoto and I walked down to my classroom through empty corridors. "Honestly! They all have no manners!" the brunette threw her hands up in the air and sighed which made me giggle a little.

"Talk about a bad impression on one of your first day of classes, sheesh. Most of those girls wouldn't pick up a dropped pen if god forbid- they had to bend over or something." She continued, at this point I was not sure at all whether or not she was talking to anyone in particular.

"No, it's really okay." I felt myself blush a little... It was embarrassing being fussed over like this...

"So anyway, where are we headed? I can go wherever the wind takes me, I have a... compassionate geography teacher this lesson." Sensing that I was a little flushed, she changed a subject and winked at me in a matter that could be considered cute.

"Well, I have English right now..."

All today I've forgotten what English means to me. I really do have high hopes Mrs. Junko will leave me alone today, she has to- I want to go see Chikane. I've been able to get away every other time... Who knows, she might even forget about it.

"What's wrong?"

At that moment I noticed my head was drooping towards the floor a little when Makoto leant her face to mine and tucked my hair behind my ear.

"Ah- no- it's nothing... Heh, you see English is really hard here." I was lying through her teeth and Makoto seemed to buy it.

"Well... Good luck with that. Say, who have you got?" Makoto asked me as a grin spread across her face.

"J-Junko."

"Oh... she's nice, you're lucky! I have grumpy old Miss Amane." Makoto happily chirped as we arrived to our destination.

I beg to differ...

"Goodbye Makoto!"

"See ya!"

I tried to walk into the classroom quietly, so as not to disrupt the lesson yet when the door slammed behind me accidentally, all eyes turned my way.

"So, you've finally decided to join us, Michiyuki." Junko tilted her head to the side and smirked. No matter how many eyes were one me at that time- hers were the ones that pierced me the most.

"I-I'm sorry!" I quickly apologized and sat in my respective seat, trying not to draw any more attention towards myself.

"Anyway, as punishment for your indecent punctuality, you're going to recite the text on page twenty-seven of your textbook and stay after class, Michiyuki."

Ah... This sucks...

I found my the page I was looking for and quickly started to recite.

_Dear sky, why do you still weep?  
Ever since the dawn of time, we wretched humans oppress and are oppressed.  
Yet, you still cry for us in vain.  
One day, surely we will notice your tears dampening the Earths surface.  
One day, surely we will repent for your Earthly brethren and blossom into an innocent entity- never knowing the pain of-_

"Stop right there. Your pronunciation is terrible. Sit down." Junko crossed her thin arms and frowned.

"I'm sorry..." This will be a terrible day.

The session passed slowly. There wasn't much written work to do. Only listening to Junko rave about pronunciation.

The bell sounded just as the clock struck 11:50. The students piled out of the classroom quickly as Junko gently reminded them of homework due on Friday.

I, too tried to make my way out of there in a hurry but in vain.

"Are we trying to making a run for it?" Junko sat in her chair and crossed her legs.

"I- Ah... No." I said while trying to hide my flustered face.

Junko stood up and paced to the door where she loudly shut it and closed the blinds. She then sighed and folded her arms. "Now, recite to me what punctuality means to you."

I racked my brain for an answer that would possibly please Junko but to no avail. "I- it's being on time for everything, miss." I stuttered and waited to see if there was going to be positive expression on my teachers face.

"Pft." She edged closer to me until our foreheads were touching. With every second of human contact my heart raced faster and faster. "You're cute when you're stuttering." She place a cold hand on the inside of my leg and started softly rubbing my thigh slowly. With each movement her hand eventually made its way higher and higher up my leg until she was rubbing my panties, harder and harder.

I felt terror rise up inside of me- I felt like a deer stuck in headlights. "P-P-Please stop..." I could only meekly squeak as she took her soft lips to mine in a contrasting rough kiss.

Muffled by her tongues entry into my mouth, I could only groan as she pushed my panties to the side and let two fingers slide up and down my...

W-Why am I wet?

I started panicking and tried to push her away but that woman just shoved her body harder against mine. When I managed to free my lips I tried to scream- instead she swiftly withdrew her fingers and placed them into my mouth.

"Mm- Ah- Please!" The taste of myself lingered on my tongue as she took away her fingers and whispered in my ear.

"Candy is still candy whether it be sweet or bitter."

With that she forcefully pushed my head to the desk, the roots of my hair grasped tightly between her slender fingers to ensure that I was not to get away.

As I was bent over, Junko brutally entered me with two fingers being painfully thrust into untouched land.

Chikane's POV

Ah, class sucked. I hate geography with a passion. Though I could never mention that out loud. At least I got to go out five minutes early. I don't especially want to go to recess either but I can't exactly return to my dorm for too long because I don't have a free next. Some girls in class told me that Himeko was looking for me before. They said they didn't know why- and quite frankly I could not comprehend why, myself. I thought she'd be either mad or afraid to face me. I wouldn't blame the poor girl either.

In class, Makoto was talking about how she wanted Miss Junko instead for her English teacher instead of the one she has like Himeko. So that could mean that Himeko would have English now- what other time would Makoto say something like that? I decided that I was going to wait outside of the classroom for her until the bell sounded.

I hummed a tune to myself as I wandered down the corridor. It wasn't that far away really. Just a two minute walk. I placed myself against the wall and patiently waited for the bell to sound, and surely enough, after a few minutes it did.

I waited at the side, watching the medium sized crowd for a certain blonde girl to emerge from there. But she was nowhere to be seen. After the last person came from the classroom I waited for about a minute and decided that she must have been kept in. Maybe she was late for class after looking for me. I really should have stayed in the room...

Nevertheless I will still wait for her to come out.

After five minutes I thought this could be a while. I decided to turn on my charm and whisk her out of there-

"Mm- ah- please!"

What the hell is going on in there?

After a few more minutes of waiting I felt the urge to barge in.

I swung open the door to see a sight to make all of the rage and malice I could possibly fathom quickly boil up inside of me.

My Himeko lay on the desk, her eyes tightly shut and tears running down her face. Her shirt was unbuttoned with a bare breast visible to the eye and her hair was messed up and spread out across the table- between her legs was a dark-haired head in which their arms were wrapped around the innocent blonde's thighs.

"Junko!" I roared- a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach compelled me to reach towards a stray pen that had been left on one of the desks and charge towards the sick freak in a blind rage.

With one swing I dropped her two the floor and mounted her so that she couldn't get away. I threateningly held the pointed side of the pen against Junko's ear while Himeko had tried with all her might to cover herself.

Her silence was painful- she looked away from us in a trancelike state as she slowly buttoned up her shirt.

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU WERE DOING YOU CRAZY BITCH?" I screamed into the opposite ear in which I was holding the pen to.

"Quiet down," That bitch said calmly, I could not fathom how she can remain in a state like this after what she did to Himeko. "I can get you kicked out for this easily."

"What are you talking about? I can get you put into fucking jail!" From there I saw a cardboard cutter lying next to stationary on the desk right next to me. It may just be my lucky day.

From there, I threw the pen to her face and snatched up the sharp knife without hesitation and held it to Junko's neck.

Even though she still held her calm demeanor- I could feel her heart pounding rapidly.

A sick smirk spread across my face as I held the knife against her neck hard enough to draw a little bit of blood. I could see easily that her shell was being shattered.

"How do you think you're going to repent for doing this to Himeko, you sick freak." The rage inside of me started to convert into a strange sort of confidence- a sort of bloodlust...

"Ch-Chikane, please stop..." I heard Himeko say, still unable to look at the two of us.

"W-why? I saw what she did! If that hurt me as much as it did then I- I couldn't even comprehend..." A lump in my throat stopped my words in their tracks...

"How..." I tried to form coherent sentences but to no avail.

As soon as my grip weakened, Junko pushed me off of her, quickly got back on her feet and fixed her clothing.

"Good day." She simply said, and with that she was gone.

I was left there with Himeko and my tears that would not stop coming. "I- I'm sorry I didn't do anything... But... I can't..."

I was lost for speech- how-

"Chikane, I'm sorry." Sweet, kind Himeko fell to her knees and took my unmoving body into her arms.

You're too kind...

I'm going to make her feel pain.

**A/N: Nayukuo, point proven. Nobody can write good fight scenes. That one scene is probably the one thing that kept me from updating and it still turned out a bit iffy, heh. Hmm, nearly four-thousand words. I would have to say that this is one of the longest chapters I've ever written. Maybe I should just avoid using word count altogether. I feel like I can start getting lazy around 1400 words usually.**

**Oh, and my usb finally died. I should post a link to a picture on my profile of how mangled it is soon.**

**Review please~ I ask for as much criticism as possible.**


	14. HIATUS NOTICE

HIATUS NOTICE.

**It should say which stories if you check them. I've lost the usb with nearly completed/completed chapters of these stories at school and in between Work experience, moving, personal life, and other things, I cannot continue these although I will try. Himemiya-Kurusugawa girls academy being the top priority but I can't guarantee that I'll even start over on the new chapter for a few months. I'll continue these when my life settles down a bit.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chikane**

Chikane averted her eyes as Himeko sat on the desk and slowly redressed herself. It was easy to tell that her face was drenched in tears, even if she wasn't looking.

Her self control over her body was almost non-existent. Seething with a rage that made her want to go after Junko and strangle her, the raven-haired girl could feel her fingernails digging into the palm of her hand as she silently gritted her teeth.

"Chikane?"

Himeko brought her knees to her chest, and peered at Chikane with eyes that looked more akin to empty vessels.

It was then that she realised that Junko had to have been the reason that Himeko came back to the dormitory room in such a worrisome mess- she realised that if only she hadn't ceased in her efforts to find out what was wrong, she could have prevented this.

_How could I have let this happen? I could have put a stop to this- I could have had her beaten within an inch of her life for even thinking about doing this to Himeko._

She simply sat down next to her, and without saying a word, put her arm around her waist, yet the blonde was motionless for merely a few seconds before recoiling away from Chikane, silent still.

"We need to leave before someone finds us," Chikane said, thanking the stars that this classroom was apparently not in use for the next period.

_Of course it wasn't in use, otherwise Junko would have kept her disgusting hands to herself. To think that this would have happened without any interruption from the outside world._

The thoughts running through Chikane's head made her sick to her stomach. There was only the presence of Himeko that stopped her from attacking the classroom's furniture.

Himeko lethargically nodded her head and stood upright, "I have Mathematics next... I'll see you after school."

With that, she patted down her uniform and began to make her way to the door.

"Don't be an idiot," Chikane snapped while grabbing her wrist, stopping her from going anywhere. Himeko looked frightened as she retracted her arm and rubbed where she had been grabbed.

"I'm sorry." Chikane said, as she realised that she may have grabbed her a little too hard. "But we're going back to the dorm, you can't go to class like this." She reached into her pocket for a handkerchief and gently lifted Himeko's chin to dab away the tears from her face. "I'll escort you back, so that you can lay down."

She could feel herself calming down considerably as Himeko looked up at her with big violet eyes.

*****  
Himeko**

_Chikane was so kind to me._

When the pair returned to their dorm room, after flights of stairs that Himeko wished she could have gone without, she was led to her bed by Chikane who then sought out extra blankets, and started to boil the kettle.

"What did you say your next lesson was? I'm going to call in sick for you, okay?" Chikane spoke ever so delicately to Himeko. "That's right, it was Maths, wasn't it?" She quickly said as she dialled the school office's number on the room's telephone.

She told them that Himeko had been feeling ill in the morning, and decided that she was too sick to continue to attend lessons for the rest of the day. For a second, she paused, then swiftly added that she may have caught whatever Himeko had, and wished to stay in bed, as well.

As she hung up the phone, she turned to Himeko and smiled softly.

She could have crumbled under the weight of the air in the room; instead, she buried herself deeper into the blankets.

_Everything hurts. I just want to take a hot shower, to never stop scrubbing myself, to never emerge from the bathroom._

"How are you feeling, Himeko?" Chikane made her way to Himeko's bed, and placed herself next to her, embracing the trembling blonde's hands with her own.

Himeko opened her mouth to speak, but managed nothing but silence.

_I wonder what Chikane thinks of me now? Is she only pretending to be nice for my sake, when she truly is disgusted with me?_

She retracted her hands at the thought, quivering with fear. _Of course she is disgusted- I am disgusting._

For a moment, I swear that her eyes wavered and became glassy. But she delicately lifted her legs up unto the bed and laid next to me in silence.

"I-I'm sorry, Chikane." Was all that she managed to say to her.

Her erratic heartbeat was somehow soothing, and for reasons beyond Himeko's comprehensive ability, she was irrationally afraid of it stopping, as if it had happened before.

She felt as if she were in another one of her strange dreams, except everything was not so foggy. Or maybe there was no everything, she thought.

All that existed was this room, and her embrace.

She knew that she did not have a sound for that unknown woman's name yet, but just for now, it can be _Chikane Ikuzawa._

Himeko was awoken by a knock at the door. Her eyes hazily searched the room for Chikane, and in her ventures, realised that it was getting quite dark outside.

_Oh my, how long have I been asleep for?_

She concluded that Chikane must have left to see a friend, or on student council business, though her thoughts were interrupted by an even louder, faster knock.

"Himeko!" She heard a voice say, "I know you're in there!" Himeko was slightly relieved to hear Makoto's voice at the door, so in turn, she sluggishly made her way over to answer it.

"Morning, lazy butt! How are you feeling?" The peppy brunette chirped, as she played with a small cardboard box that was in her hands.

"What?" Himeko groggily questioned, prior to the realisation hitting her that she had fallen asleep after Chikane called in sick for her, which inevitably caused her to remember that morning.

She shuddered, and awkwardly shuffled her legs. "Yeah, I'm feeling a little better.." She lied, to the best of her ability.

"You had better be! God forbid you aren't well enough to eat this cake- I went out of my way to get that for you after work!" Makoto gestured for Himeko to take the aforementioned box.

She thanked her sheepishly as she glanced at the label; Strawberry dreams, her favourite. Himeko graciously smiled at Makoto as she made her way to the dining table, placed the box on the cold wooden surface, and gestured for Makoto to take a seat.

"I'll go pour some tea," she said, "Make yourself at home."

All of the blinds in their dorm were shut, sans from the large one above the kitchen area sink, where afternoon rays of sun leaked in from the twilight sky. Himeko thought to herself that it must be getting dark soon.

The steam from the kettle slowly creeped up the grey walls as it 'clicked' to indicate the water was boiled. The blonde let out a yawn which inevitably morphed into a sigh as she prepared a pot of tea.

She found herself gazing out of the window, which she never took much note of beforehand. She never really took a good look at the grounds themselves. The way that the sunlight enveloped the courtyard was almost magical. The small puddles left from when it must have rained while she slept looked as if they were portals to the sky; how they glistened reminded Himeko of when she was a child, splashing about in them in the aftermath of a storm.

"Woah!" her thoughts were interrupted by Makoto's voice from the other room. As the blonde brought the tea into the main room, she noticed her friend's apparent interest in Chikane's desk.

"I didn't know Chikane had a boyfriend! I always got the 'onee-sama' vibe from her!" She excitedly exclaimed, gesturing towards the photograph of her and Yukihito.

"I- I'm not sure if Ikuzawa would appreciate you going through her things..." Himeko fidgeted placed the tea on the table, poorly attempting to change the subject.

It was true that she wasn't happy about Chikane's arranged marriage. In fact, it infuriated her a little to think that Chikane didn't have a say in it at all. If it were up to her, she'd whisk her away to some foreign country where they didn't have to worry about that sort of thing

Himeko immediately dismissed this thought, firstly because she was still unsure of Chikane's feelings towards her, and secondly because she was definitely not the kind of person who was capable of doing that. She was more of the 'being whisked away' type.

"Still," the brunette began as she sat down at the table. "aren't you even a little jealous?" Himeko felt her face burn up as she furiously shook her head. "N-no." was all that she could muster in the way of words.

Makoto let out a boisterous laugh. "You so are! I've seen the way you two look at each other!" Himeko hid her face in her hands in mortification and let out an exasperated sigh.

"I was just teasing, Himeko." The brunette had a sudden soft change in tone and slid her hands across the table, taking Himeko's in hers. "If you do need to talk about anything though, I'm not that great at advice, but I'm a good listener at least."

Himeko tried to swallow a rapidly forming lump in her throat as she heard these words, but to no avail. She found herself bursting into tears and repeatedly apologising to Makoto.

"Hey, it's okay. Here- I'll go grab some plates and we'll share this cake, alright?" Makoto ushered Himeko's tea towards her and began to make her way over to the kitchen before Himeko grabbed her wrist and pulled her into a tight hug, burying her face into the brunette's stomach.

"I- Chikane- her parents, they want to marry her off, and I- she doesn't want to, I know she doesn't and I don't want- and this morning" Himeko, barely being able to string together a coherent sentence, stopped herself before speaking another word.

"There, there," Makoto spoke, sliding her arms around Himeko, stroking the quivering blonde's hair. The moment was spent in silence, sans Himeko's occasional sob.

**A:N: Wow, it's been almost three years since I last updated. I had just started writing this chapter when I saw that review from 'a', so thanks for giving me that bit of extra motivation. Also, sorry about taking so long to update, my life's been really hectic for the past few years, I mean it still is, but it's just starting to calm down a little, but I'll still try to give you all regular updates! As you could probably understand, I'm feeling a bit rusty from not writing for so long, so forgive me if the writing seems a bit off, I'm just trying to get back into the feel of it. Again, sorry for being so late, and I would really appreciate some constructive criticism, seeing as I can't into writing, ha! Thank you so much for reading and being so patient, and I hope that you're still on FF!**


	16. Chapter 16

**Himeko**

It was a few hours before Chikane returned; Makoto had already left after a few hours of watching movies together before hurriedly scribbling her room number down on a piece of paper, saying that it was her turn to cook dinner tonight and that Himeko was welcome to come around at any time.

The blonde was sprawled out on the couch, drifting in and out of sleep, occasionally stealing a glance at the clock on the wall- a little too eager for Chikane to return. She was about to get up and make a second or third pot of tea before she heard footsteps down the hallway, followed by the fumbling of keys.

"Himeko?" Chikane softly spoke into the doorway before entering, grasping a few shopping bags in her hands, "Hello." Himeko replied, peering over the sofa arm rest, still wrapped up in a makeshift cocoon of blankets.

Chikane smiled at the blonde and slowly trudged towards the kitchen table, lugging the apparently heavy shopping bags with her lithe arms. Himeko felt a little awkward simply sitting on the couch doing nothing, and in turn, immediately stood up to help Chikane unpack the groceries.

"Sorry that I was out for so long, I needed to do council work," Chikane smiled, "then I took a cab to the nearest grocery store. I hope that I'm not too late returning."

Himeko shook her head, glad that Chikane was back.

"Coconut milk." The violet eyed girl lifted her head from her endeavours of putting away the shopping and gave Chikane an inquisitive look, grasping the condiment in her hand.

"Laksa." she addressed, relieving Himeko of the small tin, placing it on the counter. "I heard that it was a wonderful dish for when you have a 'cold'."

Himeko couldn't help but stifle a small giggle, happy that Chikane would be cooking for her.

She wondered what kind of cook she was, being raised in a prestigious family, Himeko doubted that the black haired beauty would ever have had to step foot into a kitchen. She knew very well that she would be happy with whatever Chikane cooked for her, but it was a little hard to push to the back of her mind her concerns for her stomach.

"Now, don't look at me like that." Chikane let out an earnest laugh. "I was taught from a very young age about the... duties of a housewife." she spoke of the latter with a forlorn lilt to her voice.

Himeko grimaced, partly because she was embarrassed that her face gave away her thoughts, but more so that she also picked up what Chikane was thinking as well. _What kind of a person is Yukihito?_ She thought to herself, remembering the man who she was betrothed to.

"Have... you ever met him?" Himeko spoke before she could stop herself.

"Don't be silly," Chikane smiled, gesturing towards the photograph sitting on her desk.

"O-Oh. Sorry, Chikane." Himeko apologised, nervously playing with her fingers. "But- what kind of a person is he?" she pushed.

"He's very serious, but he is also very kind. Yukihito is one of the most intelligent men I've met, for what it's worth. Though, all of our previous meetings have been brief, so I do not know him as well as I would like to." Himeko felt her gut wrench as Chikane seemed to speak highly of this man.

"You make it seem as if you want to marry him." the blonde found herself saying before she hastily covered her mouth before anything else distasteful escaped it.

The two girls stood in silence as Chikane furrowed her brow, her eyes plastered to the floor. "Ikuzawa, I-" the ravenette cut Himeko off before she could utter another word.

"There's a difference between deep respect and affection, Himeko." she spat, foraging through her shopping bags for an unsealed packet of cigarettes and turning on her heel with an irate glint in her eyes.

She knew she had upset Chikane. The mere thought was enough to make Himeko feel ill. _What if she doesn't want to be around me anymore?_

Himeko could feel a lump rapidly forming in her throat, clutching herself as to stop from shaking. Chikane was barely out the door before she turned around and caught Himeko's eyes.

"I'm sorry," she sighed, awkwardly fondling an unlit cigarette in her fingers. "I shouldn't have snapped at you."

Himeko meekly nodded, "It's my fault."

"Come out? Put a jacket on."

The night was cloudless and cold- the tips of Himeko's trembling fingers were slowly numbing.

With a flick of the cheap lighter, Chikane lit her cigarette, gazing up into the star-littered sky, hunching over for warmth. Himeko wanted to slide closer on the bench to Himeko, but stopped herself, wanting to avoid further upsetting Chikane.

"It's cold tonight." Was all she could manage to say. It's true that the snow had cleared up within the past few weeks, but the freezing temperature had still not subsided. Spring was not here just yet.

Chikane exhaled slowly, letting the smoky haze cloud her face. She slid her arm around the blonde, pulling her close, her fingers affectionately entangling themselves in Himeko's hair, whose heart beat erratically at Chikane's touch.

The azure eyed girl took a sharp breath before speaking. "I'm thinking of telling my father." she tentatively spoke, nuzzling her face into Himeko's neck, savouring the warmth. Himeko looked down inquisitively as Chikane's hand found it's way into hers.

"I'm thinking of... asking... my father's permission to choose myself how I carry out my life."

**Chikane**

_Asking _was a submissive way of putting it. Chikane's anger had subsided, being replaced with something more akin to sadness. She was still only pandering the subject, unsure whether the consequences will be bad or worse. Having thought about it for quite a while, it felt a little refreshing to get it off her chest, even if it was partly to reassure Himeko.

Chikane took amother drag of her cigarette, inhaling the foul tasting smoke, holding it for an just an unnecessary second more before exhaling, still resting on Himeko's shoulder.

The blonde was a little too silent processing what Chikane just said. The heiress knew the implications and all that came with questioning her father's authority. She knew how adversely this marriage affected his company, she knew that he would be offended, and she knew that would be disappointed in her. What she didn't know was the answer that her father might give her.

In all fairness, she didn't actually know her father that well. Most of the time, he was away on business trips, leaving Chikane in her mother's and hand maid's care. It was safe to say that her father didn't know his daughter that well either.

The mere notion annoyed Chikane a little. It was certain to her that he cared little- that she was groomed to be livestock, groomed to be bought and traded as he deemed fit.

Not to say that the little months they spent together were not spent in mirth and love, and that was why she was uncertain about his answer. Though for all she knew, it could have been just a facade, as she expected.

Though the thought of spending the rest of your life with somebody that you could never love twisted and convulsed in her stomach in ways that she never thought possible. The thought of making love to someone you do not love repulsed her to the point of crying silently at night when no one was awake. She knew about this betrothal from a very young age.

"_As soon as you have completed your education, you are to leave for America within the year, and you are to marry Yukihito."_ her hand maid Otome told her, in place of her father, shy of a few weeks after meeting the young man.

As a matter of fact, she had never directly spoken to her father about the betrothal, save for the one time she questioned the matter on one of his few visits home. This was returned by a long lecture about how it was an excellent way of expanding the company. 'Broader horizons', as he put it.

Chikane tried pleading her way out of it, but was told that she was too young to understand. This, of course, ended in a match of who could yell the loudest, and the matter was never brought up again.

Maybe this time, he would listen to her.

"Chikane," Himeko whispered into her dishevelled hair.

Chikane looked up to see Himeko's smiling face, her violet eyes staring intently into hers. "No matter what you do, I'll support you."

Chikane could feel a red tinge spreading across her milky white face, and quickly averted her eyes in hopes that Himeko wouldn't notice.

"I haven't known you for very long. But I do know that no matter what you do, I'm certain you'll be more than capable." she beamed.

That one statement made Chikane feel as if she could conquer the world. She couldn't help but smile- so hard that her cheeks began to hurt.

"Thank you, Himeko." she planted a kiss on the blondes forehead and held her close, warmth enveloping every part of her body.

"I apologise. I shouldn't be dumping this all on you, especially not now. Let's go back inside."

Himeko nodded as Chikane flicked her cigarette butt into the nearest trashcan and took Himeko's hand.

"Your hands are freezing." she spoke softly, removing her gloves and sliding them onto Himeko's hands.

"I-it's okay!" Himeko exclaimed, shaking her head. "I don't want to be any trouble!"

"Don't be silly." she grasped Himeko's gloved hands in hers and led her back down the footpath leading back to their dormitory building.

The walk had felt much longer than it really was. Chikane had noticed that Himeko was silent for most of the time. She simply stared at the pavement with a ponderous look on her face which lasted until they reached the door.

"What's wrong, Himeko?" Chikane asked, fishing for her keys in her coat pocket.

"Oh, it's nothing. I'm just not feeling very tired." Chikane glanced at the wall clock as they ventured inside. Nine o'clock, it read. It was still a little too early to go to bed, so Chikane thought that she would stay up for a little while.

"It looks like that laksa will have to wait another day." the heiress smiled as she ventured into the kitchen to fix a pot of tea.

"Hey, Chikane?" Himeko called out, sprawled across her bed, staring at the roof.

**A/N: Thank you so much for reading! Please leave constructive criticism x**


End file.
